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Pioneers and Patriots in Early 
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EVEBTCHILD'S SERIES 

Pioneers and Patriots in Early 
American History 



By 

Marguerite Stockman Dickson 

Author of ** American History for 
Grammar Schools ' ' 



Illustrated by John A. Huybers 



The Macmillan Company 
1915 

All rights reserved 



Copyright, 191 5, 
By the MACMILLAN COMPANY. 

Set up and electrotyped. Published February, 1915. 



/ o.i/^o 



Nottaootr IPreaa 

J. S. Gushing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co. 

Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



FEB 25 1915 



A YOUNG DESCENDANT 
OF THE OLD-TIME PATRIOTS 

EDWARD DICKSON WASS 



PREFACE 

The stories in this book are all concerned 
with the great fight which our forefathers 
made for independence in the Revolutionary 
War. They are told with no desire to em- 
phasize the glories of war, nor to encourage 
any tendency toward militarism ; but rather 
to arouse an interest in our early history, in 
which war unfortunately had a part. 

As in the companion book, " Camp and 
Trail in Early American History," choice has 
been made of what are considered by the 
author to be type stories, which shall contrib- 
ute toward the broad view of the time which 
we desire children to have before beginning 
the formal study of history. These stories 
bring out the character of the men who 
fought for freedom, and some of the condi- 
tions under which their fight was waged. No 



viii PREFACE 

attempt has been made to weave the stories 
Into a history of the period. Indeed, the 
principal characters to be later met In formal 
study hover only In the background here. It 
is the spirit of the time which the book aims 
to present. 

Like Its companion volume, the book may 
serve two purposes, — to precede or to sup- 
plement the textbook In history. 

Charlotte, North Carolina, 
January, 1915. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 

PAGE 

A Hero Spy i 

Liberty or Loyalty ? . . . . .18 
In the Valley of the Mohawk . . -35 
Mad Anthony at Stony Point ... 50 
The "Swamp Fox" of the Carolinas . . 64 
Homes Beyond the Mountain Wall . . 79 
Friends from Across the Sea ... 99 
Israel Israel's Experience with the Tories 119 
Another of Marion's Men . . . '. 130 
A Hero of the Sea 140 



IX 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

A HERO SPY 

Some day you will learn in your histories 
how it came about that the English settlements 
in America grew stronger than their French 
neighbors on the north or the Spaniards at the 
south. You will read about the struggle 
between French and English for the Ohio 
Valley ; and how New France was lost to the 
mother country, and was divided between 
England and Spain. 

Thus it happened that England's posses- 
sions in the New World spread from the far 
north to Spanish territory in Florida. And 
every year the various colonies grew stronger. 

To tell you how these English colonists 
quarrelled with the government of the mother 
country would be a long story. Some day 



2 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

you will learn that too in your histories. It 
is enough for us now to know that the quarrel 
arose, and that it led to war. No doubt you 
have already heard of the American Revolu- 
tion, and the independence the colonists won 
by force of arms. The story I am now to tell 
you is the story of a hero of that war. 

In a quiet room of a fine old mansion 
in the city of New York sat the commander- 
in-chief of the American army — the Con- 
tinental army, as it was known. Before him 
stood a young officer, respectfully awaiting 
the final orders of his chief. For an hour 
General Washington explained the important 
mission to be undertaken. 

We do not know what their last words were, 
as the general rose and took the young man 
by the hand ; but the moment must have been 
a solemn one for both. Both knew the dan- 
gers to be encountered; both knew the fate 
awaiting a captured spy ; both knew the scorn 
of the world for the spy's work ; and yet that 
work must be done. 



A HERO SPY 3 

This important moment in the life of 
Captain Nathan Hale came when he was 
barely twenty-one years old. A fine young 
fellow he was, tall and well built, with hand- 
some features and the glow of perfect health. 
He had graduated from Yale College only two 
years before, and had been a favorite with 
teachers, students, and the townspeople of 
New Haven. All expected for him a brilliant 
future, both because of his scholarship and 
his fine character. 

*'No young man of his years put forth a 
fairer promise of future usefulness and celeb- 
rity," says one who knew him in his college 
days. 

The war called him from the schoolroom 
in which he was already making a success as 
teacher. When the news of the first fighting 
came, Nathan Hale cried, ''Let us march 
immediately, and never lay down our arms 
until we have obtained our independence." 
With the first company organized in the town 
he set forth. 



4 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

That had been more than a year ago. He 
had already risen to the rank of captain, and 
was loved by his men as well as his superiors. 
The army was attempting the impossible 
task of holding New York against double its 
own force of British soldiers and a British 
fleet. There had been a battle on Long Island 
which left the British in possession, and now 
Washington was waiting anxiously to dis- 
cover the next move of the British commander, 
General Howe. Would he make an attack on 
the city itself ? Or would he shut the Ameri- 
cans in by seizing some position north of 
them ? Would he attack from the East 
River or the Hudson ^ 

A constant lookout was kept from heights 
above the city with powerful iield-glasses. 
But nothing was discovered. Washington 
called his officers to a council of war. There 
seemed only one thing to do. Some one must 
go into the British camp and find out the 
facts it was necessary to know. 

Scarcely any harder task could have been 



A HERO SPY 5 

proposed. It required military knowledge ; 
bravery ; coolness ; caution ; daring ; judg- 
ment ; faithfulness, — in fact, it seemed as 
though no worthy quality of head or heart 
was not required. Who would undertake so 
delicate and dangerous a mission ? Who 
would brave the scorn of the world, and 
perhaps suffer death and disgrace, to be 
a spy ^ 

It was decided that a meeting of officers 
should be called, and the matter laid before 
them. The great need must be explained. 
Perhaps some one would volunteer to make 
the attempt. 

The meeting took place. Colonel Knowl- 
ton, who commanded the "Connecticut Ran- 
gers," asked for a volunteer to serve the com- 
mander-in-chief. He explained the nature of 
the service. He reminded the officers that 
it was a case of desperate need. He appealed 
to their spirit of adventure, their ambition, 
their love of country. He paused and looked 
expectantly about the room. 



6 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

A sudden silence had fallen. There was 
a look of astonishment on every face, — on 
some a look of indignation. Colonel Knowl- 
ton was asking for a spy ! 

It would be impossible to describe the feel- 
ings aroused by Colonel Knowlton's words. 
Many, probably most, of the officers before 
him were young men. They had their dreams 
of the great things they were to do. Who 
among them wished the story of his life 
ended with ''hanged as a spy" 1 

For a moment the silence continued. Then 
came a murmur of protest. And in spite 
of all that Colonel Knowlton could say, no 
one would consent to undertake the un- 
welcome task. 

Just as the meeting was breaking up, a 
young captain in Colonel Knowlton's own 
regiment entered the room. A group of 
his friends immediately surrounded him, go- 
ing over once more the question which had 
so agitated the meeting. The young captain 
asked few questions. He waited for no de- 



A HERO SPY 7 

tails. But, hearing merely that a volunteer 
was wanted for secret service for the chief, 
he turned calmly to Colonel Knowlton, say- 
ing, '^I will undertake it." A perfect storm 
of remonstrance met him on every side. 
Surely he did not understand ! It was a 
spy's work the chief wanted ! Suppose he 
should be caught ! Had he forgotten the 
fate of captured spies ? 

But no amount of protest changed the 
calm decision. ''I will undertake it," he 
had said; and now, "I am fully sensible of 
the consequences of discovery and capture 
in such a situation." 

"I wish to be useful, and every kind of 
service necessary for the public good becomes 
honorable by being necessary." So he an- 
swered those who talked of dishonor or dis- 
grace. There is something fine about the un- 
hesitating way in which Nathan Hale made 
this decision. His country needed a certain 
service, and against his country's need nothing 
must count. So, resolutely and with his 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



lfli'^1|!|f''|l|Pl1l"f|;.i,,| 




*' Both knew the dangers to be encountered." 

whole heart, he went the way leading to 
danger and death. 

Almost immediately the young man went 
to General Washington for orders. Within 



A HERO SPY 



a few hours he had taken leave of his fellow- 
officers, and set out on his perilous mission. 

The first step of his journey was taken 
that night. With two companions he trav- 
elled along the shore 
of Long Island 
Sound, looking for a 
safe place to cross. 
This was not easy to 
find, since the whole 
western end of Long 
Island was in the 
hands of the Brit- 
ish, and their boats 
were guarding the 
Sound. They had 

reached Norwalk, fifty miles from New York, 
before they dared make the attempt. Here 
Hale laid aside his uniform, clothing himself 
once more in the plain garments of the 
schoolmaster. Then, bidding his companions 
await his return, he went on board the sloop 
which was to take him to the Long Island shore. 




Nathan Hale's camp basket, 
powder and diary, 



lO PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

Once landed, he bade his boatmen return 
for him on a certain day. Then he assumed 
the character of a schoolmaster who was 
disgusted with the ''rebellious Americans," 
and was himself a loyal supporter of King 
George. He was in search of employment 
as teacher. In this capacity he found little 
difficulty in making friends with loyalists 
and in gaining entrance to British camps. 
It is said he visited all the camps on Long 
Island, crossed to New York, which the 
British had now taken, and, returning to 
Long Island, made his way back to the place 
where his boatmen were to meet him. 

So far his work had been done skilfully; 
in his shoes, beneath loose inner soles, were 
drawings of British fortifications and in- 
formation written in Latin on the thinnest 
of paper. It was night, and before sunrise 
he would be on his way back across the 
Sound, to safety. Once on the safe side of 
the Sound, he might resume his uniform, and 
be himself once more, — Captain Nathan 



A HERO SPY II 

Hale, — on the way to rejoin his regiment, 
north of the city. 

Only one night ! but until he should be 
safe on board the sloop, he must still be the 
loyalist schoolmaster, with ear and eye quick 
to see danger, and with nerve strong and 
alert to meet it. 

So it happened that a loyalist schoolmaster 
entered a tavern near the Long Island shore, 
to pass the night. 

The tavern was a favorite meeting place 
for loyalists, and they were out in full force 
when the schoolmaster stepped in. Among 
them a red coat or two marked British sol- 
diers. All were merry, and they called the 
schoolmaster to join them. He scarcely dared 
refuse. But it was the last night! To- 
morrow, at dawn, he would find his friends 
awaiting him on the shore. Until then he 
must play his part. 

It is said that a loyalist in the party looked 
keenly at the stranger, —looked and looked 
again; then silently, still looking, passed 
out into the night and was seen no more. 



12 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

We wonder at the nerve and coolness of 
this boy of twenty-one, seated among his 
bitter foes, and obHged to take his part in 
the gay and careless chatter of the hour. 
We wonder if he noticed the overcareful 
stare of the man who left his companions 
early, and if one thrill of fear disturbed his 
even heart-beat. 

At last he was freed from the idle chatter. 
The house was quiet, and morning was not 
far off. He watched the slow change of the 
sky from black to gray. Masses of shadow 
showed at length as hills and trees. Faint 
streaks of light appeared in the eastern sky. 
A rosy flush told of coming day. 

Silently the loyalist schoolmaster made 
his way from the tavern to the shore. His 
friends must be near. In a few minutes 
more, this strain would be over. Surely 
they would not fail him. Xo ! he could 
see in the half light of the early morning, a 
boat cautiously approaching the shore. 

Running swiftly down, he threw up his 



A HERO SPY 13 

hand in signal, and in a moment was at the 
water's edge. The rest of the story is almost 
too sad and awful to tell. But we must hear 
it to value Nathan Hale at his true worth. 
Never was more courageous boy than he ! 
Never was man with greater bravery than 
this man of twenty-one ! 

You will have guessed that the boat was 
manned by British soldiers. You will guess 
their errand on this lonely shore. Whether 
the watchful loyalist of the night before knew 
Hale and sent a message to the British we 
cannot tell. We know only that the brave 
boy stood on the shore with six British mus- 
kets levelled at his head. "Surrender or 
die !" was the curt order. A moment later 
the boat moved off, bearing among the red- 
coated soldiers a suspected spy. 

Carried to a near-by British guard ship, 
Hale was searched, and the papers found in 
his shoes. Nothing more was needed to 
prove him the spy they had believed him to 
be. Taken now to the headquarters of Gen- 



14 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

eral Howe, the British commander-in-chief, 
Hale made no effort to conceal his name and 
rank, or the work he had been doing, and 
why. We are told that General Howe was 
moved to pity by the fine, frank manner of 
the young officer, but he had no power to 
change the fate reserved for spies. He or- 
dered Hale to be hanged before sunrise next 
morning. Hale was led away. 

The last night of Nathan Hale's life was 
spent alone, under strong guard. Who can 
guess the thoughts that filled those wakeful 
hours ^ There is nothing to cause the belief 
that for a moment he felt regret for what he 
had done. He had been close to success — 
and life. An unhappy chance had sharply 
turned his steps toward failure — and death. 
He must face death as he had faced the task 
now to be forever unfinished — with calm 
decision and with a love of country so great 
as to blot out all else. Long before morning 
light, the prisoner was sent under guard to 
be delivered into the hands of the executioner. 



A HERO SPY 15 

The last test of the patriot spy was at 
hand. 

A brutal man was the provost marshal 
into whose hands Hale fell. No last insult 
was too great for him to offer. Denied a 
minister, denied a Bible, denied even per- 
mission to write a farewell word to his mother, 
the hero Hale sat silent in a tent while the 
final preparations were being made. 

A pitying officer brought a Bible and paper 
for letters. The boy wrote to his mother, 
his sisters, his sweetheart. But even that 
small comfort was of brief duration. The 
provost marshal read the letters and tore 
them to fragments before his victim's eyes. 
He said he had no idea of letting the rebels 
know they had a man who could die with 
such firmness. 

Let us draw a veil over the rest of the 
sad story, lifting it only for a moment to 
catch the last words of Nathan Hale. In 
the last moment of Hale's life, the provost 
marshal tauntingly demanded a "confession." 



i6 



PIONEERS -\XD PATRIOTS 



Hale seemed not to hear him. With his fine 
head still lifted fearlessly, he looked out and 
through and beyond any taunts of men. And 
then he spoke, — to himself, or perhaps to 







.4^^^-^ 



1 '■ 



x: 



^.^ 



The Xathax Hale homestead. 

the world, — to you. to me. These were 
his words : 

'T onlv reeret that I have but one life to 



give lor my count r}' 



A HERO SPY 17 

And then he died ; and by his death glori- 
fied the name of spy. For he loved his 
country, and he ser\ed her with his life, 
choosing not the shining road to fame and 
glory, but the darker one to lonely and em- 
bittered death. And the light of his de- 
votion lights that path forever. 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 

We must not make the mistake of suppos- 
ing that every American in Revolutionary 
days fought for independence, or, if not 
fighting, gave what help he could in other 
ways. There were many people of America 
who looked upon the war as a "most wicked 
rebellion against his Gracious Majesty, King 
George." They could not understand how 
their neighbors and friends could take part 
in such wicked business. Most of them at 
the beginning of the struggle had no doubt 
that England would make short work of sub- 
duing the rebellious colonists, and they looked 
forward to long lives as subjects of the king. 

Naturally enough, many of these "loyal- 
ists," as they were called from their loyalty 
to the English government, wanted to help 
the English soldiers to put an end to the war, 

i8 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 19 

and so they joined the British airmy. There 
were whole regiments fighting for England 
which were made up of American loyalists. 

Others had no heart to fight against their 
neighbors and one-time friends. Some of 
these left their homes, going to Halifax or to 
England. Some tried to live quietly at home. 
Some gave secret aid to the king's soldiers, 
and, if they were found out, received rough 
treatment. Some received rough treatment 
anyway, simply because they were loyalists, 
or Tories, as the other party called them. 

The name Tory in itself meant nothing 
bad or disgraceful. Whig and Tory were 
the names of English political parties, as 
Republican and Democrat are in our own 
country to-day. Of course there were Whigs 
and Tories in the English colonies too. The 
Whigs in both the colonies and the mother 
country took the part of the resisting Ameri- 
cans, and the Tories believed the English 
government was right. So when an American 
called another American a Tory, he meant 



20 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

merely a man loyal to the English government. 
Of course as war went on the feeling between 
Whigs and Tories grew bitter, and the very 
word Tory came to imply scorn. 

All sorts of cruel deeds were done as the 
war spirit grew. Quiet and harmless Tories 
were tormented because they could not be- 
lieve as their neighbors did. Others were 
imprisoned or driven away from their homes. 
Tories, on the other hand, did their share of 
tormenting. They spied upon their Whig 
neighbors, and many a patriot soldier at home 
for a glimpse of wife and children was cap- 
tured by bands of Tories or by British soldiers 
warned by Tory spies. 

Perhaps the most hated of all were those 
w^ho would take neither side, or who changed 
sides during the war. Nobody trusted them, 
— nobody dared trust them. It would per- 
haps be too much to expect that every man 
should be true to his best self at such a time. 
There were selfish men, who would be sure 
to follow the stronger side for their own ad- 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 21 

vantage. There were the timid ones, who 
dared not choose the weak side even though 
they believed it right. And there were others 
that seemed to change with every wind that 
blew. When a British army encamped near 
them, they were all for ^'England and the 
Crown." When a turn of battle brought 
an American army, they were just as devoted 
to the cause of liberty and independence. 
Thus they hoped to make sure of their own 
safety. 

Michael Doherty, of Delaware, was an 
unfortunate example of this changeable nature. 
He was a sergeant in the Continental army, 
but was taken prisoner by the British. While 
in prison he was approached by a British 
officer who offered him his freedom if he 
would take the king's side. Michael, won 
by what he calls the officer's *' perpetual 
blarney" and "the king's money" slipped 
into his hand, became a duly enlisted soldier in 
the British regiment which had captured him. 

Alas, for Michael ! His regiment was or- 



22 



PIOXEERS AND PATRIOTS 



^ y^^<>^ 



X 



v- ^<^s»* 






;^ i 








Michael was again a valiant British soldier, axd, when the 

BATTLE WAS OVER, AGALX A PRISONER TO HIS FRIE>-I>S, THE 
EXEMT. 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 23 

dered to garrison Stony Point, and there 
''Mad Anthony's" men gave him an ugly 
wound and took him prisoner again. No 
doubt he had time to think over the matter 
seriously while his wound was healing; at 
any rate he changed his sympathies and was 
forgiven and received back with kindness 
by his comrades in his old Delaware regiment. 
But at the battle of Camden in South Caro- 
lina the British won the day, and poor Michael 
soon found himself marched to the coast and 
shut up on a British prison ship. By that 
time changing sides had probably become a 
habit, so we are not surprised to hear that, 
in the battle at the Cowpens, Michael was 
again a valiant British soldier, and, when 
the battle was over, again a prisoner to his 
friends, the enemy. What became of him 
after that I cannot say, but he lived to tell 
the tale, which he concluded with these words : 
"I feel some qualms at the thought of battle 
since, take whatever side I will, I am always 
sure to find it the wrong one." 



24 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

I must tell you the story of Doctor Byles 
and his two daughters, of Boston. For more 
than forty years the learned doctor was pas- 
tor of a church in his native town, but when 
trouble came between the colonies and the 
English government, his people were not sat- 
isfied with the good doctor's stand. 

He was careful not to say a word about 
politics or the questions that everybody else 
was talking excitedly about. Other preachers 
wrote sermons about ''the duty of the col- 
onies to the king," or "the wrongs of the 
American colonies," but never a word from 
Doctor Byles. At last some one asked him 
why he expressed no opinion. His reply 
was : "In the first place, I don't understand 
politics ; in the second place, you all do, 
every man and mother's son of you ; in the 
third place, you have politics all the week, 
pray let one day in seven be devoted to re- 
ligion." 

This, however, did not satisfy his Whig 
congregation. The people believed he was 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 25 

a Tory at heart. And so he was, but of the 
sort that was disposed to keep out of the 
quarrel and allow those who felt more strongly 
than he to settle it. 

It was not long before his Tory sympathies 
cost him his church ; but he lived on in his 
old house in Boston. His daughters were 
far more interested than he. They wel- 
comed to their father's house the British of- 
ficers then stationed in Boston ; they watched 
anxiously for news of British victories ; they 
prayed for the success of England and the 
welfare of the British king. 

The old doctor was closely watched, you 
may be sure, and, at one time during the war, 
he was tried and sentenced to be shut up in 
his own house under guard. It might have 
been worse, of course, and the old man, al- 
ways cheerful, made the best of it, although 
the daughters more than offset his mildness 
by their indignant exclamations. 

One day it happened that the doctor was 
alone in the house, before which the sentinel 



26 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



marched back and forth on his usual guard 
duty. It also happened that the doctor 
found himself much in need of a servant or a 
messenger boy to do an errand 
for him. Unfortunately he 
could not go himself, and there 
was no one else. Quite an- 
noying, surely ! Suddenly, with 
a twinkle in his shrewd old 
eyes, the doctor threw open 
the front door and hailed the 
guard. 

Now, I haven't a doubt that 
the militiaman pacing up and 
down before the doctor's door 
was very tired of his task. And 
I should be very little surprised 
to know that it seemed to him 
rather a foolish precaution to guard this 
white-haired old man who had done noth- 
ing worse than to wish success to England in 
the war. Even so, he stood in open-mouthed 
astonishment when the doctor coolly proposed 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 



27 




Ltr r o^rr^r ^-rk: «--"---" 

'^U ON. 1 LL DO SENTRY DUTY." 



28 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

that he — the guard — go on an errand for 
his prisoner ! 

"But, sir," he stammered, "who — who — 
who would stand guard over you, sir ?" 

"I am quite capable of shouldering a mus- 
ket myself," replied the old doctor. "Go on. 
I'll do sentry duty." The strangest part of 
the story is that the sentinel agreed, leaving 
the prisoner to march gravely back and forth 
for an hour or more, till his return. 

Once the doctor and his daughters were 
ordered to be sent to England, but the sen- 
tence was not carried out. Instead they 
remained in their old home, while the war 
went on and finally ended in the independence 
of the American colonies. 

The hopes and prayers of the doctor's 
daughters had gained them nothing. Still, 
however, they were loyal to King George. 
The father died, but the daughters lived in 
Boston for fifty years after the war, unchang- 
ing loyalists to the days of their death. The 
people around them might yield to the rulers 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 29 

of ^'the states." They were as they had 
always been, subjects of the king. Their 
old-fashioned house was kept as in their 
father's day. Their treasures were ^'from 
England" and as old or older than them- 
selves. They talked of the old days when 
they were taken to walk on the Common by 
General Howe and Lord Percy of the King's 
Army, and of the band which played beneath 
their windows by the order of these officers. 
As death approached, they found great com- 
fort in the knowledge that "not a creature 
in the states will be any better for what we 
shall leave behind us." 

To them the war was always "a rebellion," 
and they never forgot nor forgave the deeds 
of their "misguided countrymen." We can- 
not help feeling sorry for the poor old ladies, 
although we rejoice in America's freedom 
and in the deeds of our patriot forefathers, 
which won it. 

There is a story of another old minister 
in Massachusetts, which shows him, like 



30 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

his fellow-Tory, Doctor Byles, a gentle and 
peace-loving man. For many years before 
the Revolution he had been wont to pray as 
other ministers did for "'our excellent King 
George"; and one Sunday after the war 
began, he, in an absent-minded way, offered 
the sam.e prayer. He had scarcely spoken 
the words **King George," however, when 
he realized what he had said and that his 
people would surely object: so he immedi- 
ately went on, **0 Lord, I mean George 
Washington." 

There were not many Tories as harmless 
to the patriot cause as Doctor Byles, nor 
many who could have been trusted to stand 
guard over themselves. On ever}- hand we 
hear of Tor}- deeds. In the Mohawk \'alley, 
in Xew York State, the}- gathered together 
bands of Indians and, with their aid, carried 
on the most cruel and a\\-ful warfare. There 
were raids and massacres, murder and scalp- 
ing, — warfare not onl}- against men, but 
aeainst women and children. 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 



31 



Everywhere through the middle colonies 
and the south there were more Tories than 
in New England ; and the patriots of these 
sections had to fight not only British soldiers, 
but neighborhood Tories. Stories are still 
told In Pennsylvania of the five Doane 
brothers, who left their home, and carried 
on their warfare from the woods. They were 
the terror of the neighborhood, spying, rob- 
bing, dashing out from their hiding places, 
and doing all manner of harm to the patriot 
cause. 

Scarcely a town, north or south, but has 
its stories of Tory misdeeds. There Is a 
story of a southern patriot, whose plantation 
was left for months at a time in charge of 
his faithful slaves, while the master fought 
for liberty. One night the master suddenly 
appeared, and the slaves were rejoiced to see 
him, although they feared for his safety, for 
there were many Tories in the neighborhood. 

After a long talk about plantation matters, 
the weary soldier sought his bed, and was soon 



32 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

sleeping soundly. The slaves kept watch, 
lest he should be surprised and captured. 
Suddenly in the dark hours of the night, the 
slaves came running to rouse their master. 

''The Tories are coming, massa. They 
are coming, sure," they cried, even shaking 
the sleeping man to rouse him to his danger. 
He had scarcely wakened when he knew the 
slaves were right. Voices and hoof beats 
told the story. There was little time in which 
to flee. 

Reassuring the frightened negroes, the sol- 
dier ran down the stairs, and, still in his 
night-clothes, hastily concealed himself in a 
thickly growing shrub close to the house. 
There was no time to seek a more distant 
refuge. Scarcely had the crackling of twigs 
and the rustling of leaves ceased before the 
Tory band was upon him. He hardly dared 
breathe. 

In a moment the leader of the company 
was roughly demanding that the slaves lead 
him to their master. They protested loudly 



LIBERTY OR LOYALTY? 33 

that they did not know where he was. And 
indeed they did not. They knew only that 
he was hidden somewhere. The voices grew 
louder and angrier. The slaves grew more 
and more frightened, but they were loyal in 
spite of fright. The Tories threatened them 
with whipping and with torture, but were at 
last convinced that they really did not know. 

Close beside the hiding place of the soldier, 
the Tories gathered, and soon decided that 
they would burn the house. ^'He's probably 
in it somewhere, so we'll get him dead if not 
alive," said one. In a short time there was 
smoke and the crackling of flames. The fire 
burned rapidly, and the man in the bushes 
began to suffer from the heat. He had torn 
his scanty garments in getting to his hiding 
place, and now the heat was blistering his 
back and arms. It seemed as though he must 
cry out. But crying out meant- capture and 
perhaps death. He bit his lips, and endured 
the torment. 

At last the Tories, seeing that the house 



34 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

was doomed, turned about, and, with a last 
threat flung toward the weeping negroes 
clustered at a little distance, rode off. Then 
the master crept forth, scratched and bleeding, 
scorched and blistered. But he lived to fight 
again for liberty. 

One of the saddest things about the war 
for independence was the turning against 
each other of one-time friends and neighbors. 
But in most cases, people favored the side 
which they thought right, and we must allow 
to each the liberty of his own belief. Whigs 
and Tories called each other hard names ; and 
when the Whigs were victorious and won 
independence, they treated the defeated Tories 
harshly. It is only in these later years that 
we can see that, if they were honest, they 
could only defend the right as they saw it. 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 

In Revolutionary days, most of the colony 
of New York was still unsettled forest, peopled 
only by traders and trappers and by the 
Indians of the Six Nations. The settlements 
of the colony were almost entirely in the 
valleys of the Hudson and the Mohawk. 
These two beautiful streams had long been 
the highways for traffic between the towns 
and the wilderness to the north and west. 

The people of the Mohawk Valley lived 
comfortably on their fertile farm lands. 
Many were descended from the Dutch ; many 
more, from German settlers of the century 
before ; some, from Scotch Highlanders ; and 
a few were '* Yankees" from the New England 
settlements. In the valley was the great 
estate of Sir William Johnson, now descended 
to his son. Sir John. Both father and son 

35 



36 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 




Now THE Indian lad, raised to the leadership of his tribe, 
WAS a firm friend to Sir William's son." 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 37 

had wonderful control over their Indian 
neighbors, among whom they had long lived 
almost as rulers. The chief of the Mohawks 
had as a boy been a great favorite with Sir 
William, who had sent him to school and 
treated him like a son. Now the Indian lad, 
raised to the leadership of his tribe, was a 
firm friend to Sir William's son, and both 
were firm friends to the cause of the English 
king. Indeed nowhere in the colonies were 
more devoted loyalists than here in the 
Mohawk Valley. 

Sir John gathered the Tories of the neigh- 
borhood into a famous regiment known as 
the "Royal Greens," and the Mohawk chief, 
who is best known by his English name, 
Joseph Brant, brought great war parties of 
Mohawks to lend their aid. 

On a sultry summer morning in August, 
1777, Colonel Peter Gansevoort with seven 
hundred and fifty men was holding Fort Stan- 
wix in the Mohawk Valley against a besieg- 
ing force of British soldiers. The Americans 



38 PIONEERS AXD PATRIOTS 

\^-ithin the fort were waiting for some relief 
party to drive the British away, since the 
garrison was hardly strong enough to do it 
^^"ithout aid. 

Before the Fort were gathered about seven- 
teen hundred men fighting under the British 
fiag. Of these less than half were British sol- 
diers. The "regulars," commanded by Col- 
onel St. Leger, had come down through Lake 
Ontario from Canada, landing at Oswego. 
There they had been joined by Johnson's 
Royal Greens and another Ton* regiment — 
valley men who were thus setting out to fight 
their own neighbors and former friends — 
and also by a band of Indians — Mohawks 
and other Iroquois. 

Together, regulars, Tories, and Indians 
had followed the streams and lakes from 
Oswego to the head waters oi the Mohawk, 
and were now to capture the fort and sweep 
down through the valley, killing and destroy- 
ing as they went. 

Within the fort. Gansevoort waited relief. 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 39 

Without, the British commander awaited the 
time when hunger should drive the men within 
to surrender. Far back in the forest another 
band was waiting too. 

Here were eight hundred militiamen of 
the valley, gathered by General Nicholas 
Herkimer as soon as he heard of St. Leger's 
approach, and now marching to the relief 
of the fort. It was well known that the Tories 
were strong in the valley, and the British 
commanders made the mistake of thinking 
that there were few there who were not 
Tories. We shall see how they came to 
change their minds. 

Herkimer was a stout old German, a vet- 
eran of the French wars, and the men he com- 
manded were the farmers from the country- 
side, who had left their hayfields not only to 
show their devotion to the patriot cause, 
but to protect their homes and families against 
the dreaded Tories and the still more dreaded 
Indian warriors. 

The hot August morning found the militia 



40 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

stirring early in their camp at Oriskany, 
eight miles from Fort Stanwix. Men as well 
as officers knew that Herkimer was awaiting 
a signal from the fort. When they had 
halted here the night before, Herkimer had 
sent three messengers ahead to approach 
Fort Stanwix from the rear by w^hat the 
British considered an impassable swamp. 
The messengers wxre to tell of the approach 
of friends, and to ask Colonel Gansevoort 
to attack the British from the front at the 
same time the militia attacked from the rear. 

And so Herkimer waited in the w^oods at 
Oriskany for the three guns that should tell 
him his messengers had reached the fort and 
that Gansevoort was beginning the attack. 
It was expected that the messengers would 
reach the fort by dawn. Now all ears were 
strained to catch the boom of the fort guns. 

The hot sun and the hard, rough ground 
caused early waking, and the camp was 
soon lively with movement and conversation. 
The men clustered in groups for breakfast. 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 41 

after which, preparations for the march were 
made. Soon all was in readiness — blankets 
rolled and strapped, haversacks packed, mus- 
kets inspected, the supply wagon loaded, and 
the horses attached. All the while men and 
officers listened for the signal guns. 

The sun climbed higher. It was eight 
o'clock. Still there was no signal. The men 
were growing uneasy now. Some began to 
question whether the guns could be heard so 
far away. Others clamored to go on, whether 
the guns should sound or not. A few hinted 
darkly that Nicholas Herkimer had a brother 
in Johnson's Tory regiment, and perhaps 
Nicholas too — and though they went no 
further, all who heard could guess their 
meaning. It mattered little that many an- 
other man in camp had relatives in the Tory 
regiments. Everybody knew how the valley 
was torn by these family divisions. Stout- 
hearted old Nicholas, however, was as true 
a patriot as could be found in all the colony, 
and most of them knew it. Still the men 



42 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

grumbled and questioned, and the sun climbed 
higher still. 

The officers were gathering about the 
commander, who waited, uneasy too. Then 
the officers, impatient to move, urged Herki- 
mer to go on without the guns. He stead- 
fastly refused. There were many reasons 
why it would not do, he said, as he calmly 
smoked his pipe and waited. The only hope 
of victory lay in attacking the British from 
both sides at once. 

The officers were growing angry, as they 
tried one argument after another without 
changing Herkimer's mind at all. Their 
voices grew louder and their sense of the 
respect due their commander grew less. The 
men clustered about, calling, "Lead us on ! 
Give us the word, Nicholas !" All order 
seemed gone. The old general stood, it 
seemed, alone, against the whole eight hun- 
dred, who had lost their senses in the excite- 
ment and disappointment of delay. 

At last the officers openly accused the old 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 43 

general of being a Tory — or a coward — 
and taunted him until even his calm courage 
could bear no more. He jumped to his feet, 
waving his sword, and, crying, "If you will 
have it," shouted the order to march. 

The militia moved forward, with the grim 
old general at their head. It was now nine 
o'clock, and the heat was intense. Leaden 
thunder clouds showed their tips in the sky, 
and the men were glad when the brazen sun 
was covered. The way led through deep 
woods, with bad roads and frequent bridges 
of logs across swampy hollows. When at 
one of the worst of these, a deep ravine with 
steep wooded sides, all were intent upon 
getting across safely, a wild war whoop and 
sudden stinging rifle shots told that the enemy 
was lying in wait. 

In a moment all was confusion. The hidden 
savages swarmed upon the men huddled to- 
gether on the bridge at the bottom of the 
hollow, while from the top of the further hill 
charged the hated Tories of the " Royal Greens. " 



44 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



^1##&-^ 










In a moment all was confusion 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 45 

The surprise was complete, but old Nicholas 
Herkimer never flinched from the fight. In 
the midst of the wild clamor his commands 
rang out. The men were ordered to shelter 
behind trees or fallen logs. The pitiless 
hail of bullets continued, but Herkimer's 
men were doing their share now. The toma- 
hawks still swung high, but sometimes before 
they fell their savage owners dropped be- 
neath the crashing blow of a clubbed musket 
in a sturdy farmer's hands. Tory and pa- 
triot clinched and fell, rolling, stabbing, dying 
in each other's grasp. Old neighbors, one- 
time friends, fought fiercely, with hate in 
the hearts once filled with friendly thoughts. 

There seemed no end to the swarming 
savages or to the stinging fire from the smoke- 
covered hillside. All the while the steel- 
gray thunder clouds had been growing 
blacker, until there was almost the darkness 
of night in the ravine. The fight went on, 
swiftly, fiercely, with sickening sights and 
sounds. 



46 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

A ball killed General Herkimer's horse and 
shattered the brave old man's leg. He coolly 
ordered his saddle placed at the foot of a 
tree on the hillside, and when the wound was 
bound up, he drew his pipe and smoked 
thoughtfully, as his keen eyes watched the 
awful fight. It was like the battles of olden 
times, in which each man fought a single 
enemy to the death and then turned swiftly to 
a new encounter. The little valley was strewn 
with the dead, and it seemed as though the 
battle would go on until none was left alive. 

Suddenly the storm, long gathering, broke 
with crash and glare, with wild roar of wind 
and downpouring torrents of water. Great 
trees bent and rocked. The thunder shook 
the earth; and the bright unearthly light 
flashing from the clouds showed all the 
horrors of the battle ground. 

Sounds of firing ceased and the little hollow 
in the woods sank to silence, save for the 
battle in the sky. Then, suddenly, the storm 
was over, and through the dripping, leafy 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 47 

cover came long quivering rays of sunlight. 
At this moment, while the din of battle was 
hushed, came a sound from the westward, — 
a dull boom ! — boom ! — boom ! It was the 
signal gun, and it rang through the death- 
strewn forest with heavy, mournful sound. 

Then came the crackling noise of muskets 
from the same direction, telling that the at- 
tack from the fort had begun. In the valley 
the patriots fought with redoubled strength, 
and soon they saw the enemy give way before 
them. Then they were left in the blood-stained 
valley, alone, too weak to follow as the 
broken remnant of Tory and Indian band 
made its way back to camp. 

Sadly the patriots placed their wounded 
on litters of green boughs and turned back 
toward Oriskany. They could do no more. 
The garrison within the fort must fight 
alone. 

Within the fort that morning distant sounds 
of battle had been heard, but no one could 
explain their meaning, until, late in the 



48 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

forenoon, Herkimer's three messengers ap- 
peared, mud stained and weary, from the 
swamp. Gansevoort hastened to make the 
attack, hoping to draw back the attention of 
the British toward the fort. Colonel Willett 
made a brilliant dash upon Johnson's Tory 
camp, drove the Tories across the river, and 
held the camp while twenty-one wagon loads 
of food, blankets, clothes, tools, and ammuni- 
tion were carried to the fort. 

Returning to the fort. Colonel Willett 
hoisted there five British banners he had cap- 
tured in the enemy's camp, and over them he 
raised, for the first time anywhere, the new 
flag of the United States of America, It 
was only a few weeks since Congress had 
adopted the ''Stars and Stripes" for a na- 
tional flag, and this first banner to be flung 
to the breeze was a decidedly home-made 
affair, cut from a white shirt, an old blue 
jacket and some strips of red cloth from a 
petticoat contributed by a soldier's wife. 
But it was ''the Stars and Stripes," and it 



IN THE VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK 49 

waved triumphantly above the British stand- 
ards over the fort. 

Herkimer's gallant attempt to relieve the 
fort must not be considered a failure, although 
his men suffered such awful loss, and finally 
had to turn back home. St. Leger still 
remained encamped before the fort, it is 
true, but his men too had suffered in the 
forest battle, and after it many of the In- 
dians had quietly stolen away. When rumors 
of a strong force of Americans marching up 
through the valley were heard, Tories and 
Canadians and even British regulars fled 
also and left the valley fort in peace. 

And so, although brave old General Her- 
kimer gave his life in the terrible fight at 
Oriskany, he did not give it in vain. And 
the people of the valley still speak his name 
with love and reverence. 



MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 



Perhaps no story of the Revolution has 
been told oftener or with greater enjoyment 

than the account of 
the attack on Stony 
Point by General 
Anthony Wayne. 
" Mad Anthony," they 
called him, from the 
fierceness and fury 
of his charge ; and 
"Mad Anthony," we 
call him still, although 
we know he was not 
only a valiant fighter, 
not only a dashing soldier, 
but a careful general, upon whom Washington 
was wont to rely. 

so 




"Mad Anthony." 

but an able leader 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 51 

If ever a man was born to be a soldier, 
Anthony Wayne was destined to that career. 
We smile as we read almost the only word 
we have about his youth ; for it is full of 
"soldiering." 

It seems young Anthony had not been 
doing well at school, and his teacher, who was 
also his uncle, wrote about him to his father : 

"What he may be best qualified for, I 
know not ; but one thing I am certain of, 
that he will never make a scholar. He may 
make a soldier ; he has already distracted the 
minds of two-thirds of the boys under my 
direction by rehearsals of battles, sieges, etc. 
They exhibit more the appearance of Indians 
and harlequins than of students ; this one, 
decorated with a cap of many colors ; and 
others, habited in coats as variegated as 
Joseph's of old; some, laid up with broken 
heads, and others, with black eyes. During 
noon, in place of the usual games and amuse- 
ments, he has the boys employed in throwing 
up redoubts, skirmishing, etc. I must be 



52 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

candid with you, brother Isaac ; unless An- 
thony pays more attention to his books, I 
shall be under the painful necessity of dis- 
missing him from the school." 

We are glad to know that Anthony reformed 
his ways, that he gave up his "military re- 
hearsals, mud forts, and sham battles," and 
astonished his uncle by becoming a good deal 
of a " scholar " after all. 

The beginning of the Revolution found 
Anthony Wayne a promising young surveyor 
of thirty. But he was more than ready to 
give up surveying in order to fight for his 
country; and as in his school days, he was 
able to inspire others with his own enthusiasm. 
He rose rapidly in the Continental army, 
and by the summer of 1779, when our story 
begins, was one of the most popular officers 
in the army, and one of Washington's trusted 
generals. 

Although you have not yet studied the 
history of the Revolution, you can easily 
see what an advantage it would have been 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 53 

to the British to gain control of the Hudson 
River. By holding this, they might ''cut 
the colonies in two." Before 1779 they had 
made two attempts to seize the Hudson but 
had not succeeded. They had gained pos- 
session of New York City, but the Americans 
held the ground above. 

West Point was the stronghold of the 
Americans on the Hudson, and its natural 
position had been made stronger by fortifica- 
tions. The British could scarcely hope to 
take it. They had, however, seized Stony 
Point, fourteen miles below West Point, and 
were making that strong with fortifications 
and earthworks. They also held Verplanck's 
Point, across the river. 

Between these two points ran King's Ferry, 
and the loss of that means of travel and con- 
veyance disturbed the Americans. 

Stony Point was a natural fortress, extend- 
ing as it did nearly half a mile into the river, 
and so surrounded by water on two sides. 
The land side was cut off by marshes, which 



54 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

at high water were completely covered. 
Strongly fortified, It seemed as though no 
attempt to take It could succeed. 

Washington, however, determined to make 
the attempt. There were reasons why the 
capture of Stony Point would mean far more 
than just regaining the use of the ferry. 
Therefore Washington laid careful plans and 
made preparations for an attack. 

Every detail of the plan was worked out 
by Washington, In the utmost secrecy. The 
task was to be given to the Light Infantry, 
recently made up of picked men from the 
various regiments under Washington's im- 
mediate command. They wxre the very 
flower of the army, the finest of the troops 
from Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Con- 
necticut, and Massachusetts. Their officers 
included a young Dane; a gallant French- 
man ; Major Thomas Posy, of Virginia ; Col- 
onel Richard Butler, of Pennsylvania ; Major 
Jack Steward, of Maryland, whose bearing 
was that of a fashionable young dandy, but 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 55 

whose daring and courage were the wonder 
of those who knew him ; Colonel Meigs and 
Lieutenant Colonel Sherman, of Connecticut ; 
William Hull, of Massachusetts ; Major 
Hardy Murfree of North Carolina. Every 
officer had been selected by Washington him- 
self, and for their leader had been chosen 
General Anthony Wayne. 

The only possible hope of taking Stony 
Point lay in keeping the British from getting 
the slightest notion that any plan was on 
foot. "Knowledge of your intention ten 
minutes previously obtained blasts all your 
hopes," Washington wrote to Wayne, who 
with two of his four regiments was in readi- 
ness about five miles below West Point. The 
other two regiments were ordered to report 
to Wayne on July 14th. The date fixed for 
the attack was midnight of th^ iSth, but 



not a man in the force and only \ very few 
of the officers knew there was to be ahy attack 
at all. \ 

During the forenoon of the iSth the en- 



56 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

tire command, about thirteen hundred and 
fifty men, was drawn up in battle array for 
"general inspection" by the commander. 
Men must be "fresh shaved and well pow- 
dered, fully equipped and rationed," were 
General Wayne's orders. 

By noon the review was over, and the men 
expected to be ordered back to their quarters. 
To their surprise, however, they were given 
marching orders, and were soon in motion 
along the road leading to the south. 

All the afternoon they tramped southward, 
and by eight o'clock came to a halt thirteen 
miles from their camp, and only a mile and a 
half back from Stony Point. How much the 
men suspected in regard to their destination 
is not known, but they must have guessed 
that some undertaking of importance was 
planned. Orders on the march had been that 
not a man was to leave the ranks for a moment 
for any purpose whatever except at a general 
halt, and even then no man must get out of 
sight of an officer. If any man should guess 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 57 

what was going on, he must have no chance to 
spread his guesswork where it might do harm. 

More than that, officers had been sent with 
small companies by another and nearer road 
"to take and keep" all the men living in the 
neighborhood, lest they should run to the 
British camp with news. Not a person was 
allowed to reach the camp. Even two poor 
widows who were on the way to sell chickens 
and greens to the soldiers were stopped. 
And all this went on so quietly that no breath 
of gossip reached the fort on Stony Point. 
By nightfall American sentries had formed a 
silent line around the foot of the great hill. 
All was ready. The secret had been kept. 
Wayne had only to wait. 

The plan divided the forces into three 
parts. One of these divisions, containing 
only two companies, was to march along the 
ferry road toward the fort. This division 
was "to amuse the British," as Wayne ex- 
pressed it, while the other two did the work. 
The two remaining divisions were to ap- 



58 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

proach the hill through the marsh, one on 
the north and the other on the south side. 
These were, if possible, to rush silently into 
the fort while the British were being " amused " 
by the small company in front. 

Every detail was arranged, and late in the 
evening the men were called to attention and 
the "order of battle" was read. There was 
excitement enough when they knew what 
was before them. But even excitement must 
make no noise. Every man was given a strip 
of white paper to fasten to his hat, that he 
might be recognized as an American by his 
companions in the fight. The orders were 
that no man was to load his gun. The at- 
tack was to be a bayonet charge. Only the 
small division in front was to fire. Any sol- 
dier who should fire his musket without 
orders or should retreat one foot was to be 
killed instantly by the nearest officer. 

A watchword was given. The moment a 
soldier got within the fort, he must shout 
and keep on shouting, "The fort's our own." 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 59 

It was hoped that both columns would reach 
the fort at the same time. Prizes of money 
were oifered to the men who should first 
enter the fort. 

It was within half an hour of midnight when 
the march began, and promptly at twelve 
the silent columns had reached the marsh. 
The men found the water deeper than they 
had expected ; but they marched steadily 
on, sometimes waist deep, across the two 
hundred yards of black and slippery marsh. 
Still they were silent, but before they were 
across, they were fired upon by the enemy's 
pickets and heard shouts of "To arms ! to 
arms !" from within the fort. 

Straight on the two columns went, climbing 
the rough sides of the frowning hill, hewing 
with axes to make opening, meeting the fire 
of musket and cannon, but firing never a shot 
in return. Some fell, others were wounded, 
but struggled on. Wayne was with the 
southern column, but neither men nor offi- 
cers needed Mad Anthony's urging that night. 



6o 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 








'They were all mad with excitement and enthusiasm. 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 6 1 

They were all mad with excitement and en- 
thusiasm and went scrambling up through 
the darkness like cats. 

A bullet wound in the head stopped Wayne 
himself for a moment, but it proved to be 
only a flesh wound and he pressed on. There 
were other narrow escapes, — bullet holes 
in hats, boots, and coats ; bent swords ; and 
scarred guns. Nobody paid much attention 
to anything short of a wound which brought 
him to the ground. 

Within the fort, men had sprung to their 
stations at the first alarm and were valiantly 
defending the hill. The wisdom of the 
American plan was soon shown. All the 
noise was in front, where Major Murfree's two 
companies were making great show. W^hile 
the British rushed to the outer line of their 
defences to meet them, a silent column of 
Americans went rushing into the fort from 
either side, meeting defence at the bayonet's 
point, and madly shouting, ''The fort's our 
own ! The fort's our own !" 



62 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

So indeed it was. The British were sur- 
rounded and could only surrender. Few men 
were killed on either side. More than five 
hundred prisoners were taken, and valuable 
cannon and supplies secured. Only one man 
escaped, by swimming nearly a mile to a 
British man-of-war in the river. 

Stony Point was taken. General Wayne 
reported to Washington : 

** Stony Point, i6th July, 1779. 

" 2 o'clock A.M. 
" Dear Gen'l : 

" The fort and garrison, with Col. Johnson, 

are ours. Our officers and men behaved like 

men who are determined to be free. 

" Yours most sincerely, 

''Ant'y Wayne." 

The whole country went wild over the 
achievement of Wayne and his gallant Light 
Infantry. An amusing order issued by Wayne 
shows us how prominent a place they oc- 
cupied in public attention. 



"MAD ANTHONY" AT STONY POINT 63 

"As the eyes of the citizens and country," 
he wrote, ''will be more full upon the 
American Light Infantry than any other 
part of the army, the General can't doubt but 
that every officer without distinction will exert 
himself and require his men immediately to 
furbish up their arms and clothing in the best 
and neatest manner possible." And he gave 
his Stony Point prize money to buy needles 
and thread for the men to use in "mending 
themselves up." It is a question in my mind 
whether the Light Infantry proved as ex- 
pert in mending rents as in storming forts. 
I can better imagine them handling bayonets 
than needles. But they were brave fellows, 
these picked men of Mad Anthony's, and no 
doubt they conquered, even against such 
fearful odds, emerging brushed and mended, 
"fresh shaven and well powdered," for the 
admiration of the public which came forth at 
their approach to see the heroes of Stony 
Point. 



THE "SWAMP FOX" OF THE 
CAROLINAS 

In the later years of the Revolution, almost 
all the fighting was in the south. After 
failing twice to "cut the colonies in two" at 
the Hudson, British soldiers were sent to the 
southern colonies. They felt sure that many 
loyalists would fight with them ; and they 
hoped to win back the south with the Tory 
aid. 

There were many loyalists in the southern 
colonies, it is true. But there were also many 
patriots. Well did they defend their homes, 
and well did they fight for independence and 
liberty. Among them all, none deserves 
greater fame than Francis Marion, the 
"swamp fox." 

Perhaps I cannot better show you how he 
came by this name than to lead you to one 

64 



"SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS 65 

of his favorite camping grounds. But first 
I must teil you that Marion's men were not 
finely drilled ''regulars," with gay uniforms 
and shining swords, who fought great battles 
amid the booming of cannon and the roll of 
fife and drum. 

They were rather men who had gathered 
to fight against the bands of Tories who were 
spreading destruction through the south. 
They were men who put themselves under 
Francis Marion's leadership because they 
believed he could lead them to success. They 
came and went, now fighting, now returning 
to their homes to care for their wives and 
children, and then returning to fight again. 
They wore no uniform and were often scantily 
clothed. Their swords, if they had any, were 
either taken from some British prisoner or 
more often were old saws, heated and ham- 
mered into weapons. They were nearly al- 
ways short of ammunition ; indeed it often 
happened that not more than half the men 
went into a fight; the rest stood back and 



66 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

waited for the fall of some fighter — either 
friend or foe — in order to secure arms or 
ammunition. The band sometimes numbered 
not more than twenty men, sometimes seventy 
or perhaps one hundred and fifty. The 
number was always changing. Whether with 
few men or many, Marion accomplished his 
purpose, which was to worry the enemy 
whenever and wherever he could. 

Cornwallis, the British commander, found 
Marion a frequent annoyance. ''I would 
give a good deal to have him taken," he said, 
and again, "Colonel Marion had so wrought 
upon the minds of the people that there was 
scarcely an inhabitant between the Santee 
and Pedee that was not in arms against us. 
Some parties had even crossed the Santee 
and carried terror to the gates of Charleston 
itself." 

Marion in his camp at Snow's Island pre- 
sents us a picture very much like Robin Hood 
in his retreat in Sherwood Forest. In the 
midst of forest-grown swamp lands where 



"SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS 67 

two rivers joined, the camp was difficult to 
reach and easy to guard and, best of all, near 
to the places where the enemy could be 
found. 

The island itself was fairly high and dry, 
covered with forests and thickets of cane. 
Here Marion encamped when not in motion. 
He destroyed all bridges in the neighborhood 
and seized all boats. He closed the ordinary 
paths into the swamp with heaps of brush 
and hewn timber. Thus he rested secure in 
his island fortress. 

Here were stored such arms and ammuni- 
tion as the band had ; here were held their 
prisoners ; and here their wounded rested 
and recovered their strength for another day 
of fighting. Sometimes these invalids cleared 
and cultivated a small spot where they planted 
corn ; sometimes they shot small game in 
the woods around them ; and here they wel- 
comed back their loved commander and his 
fighting men. 

Night after night when the band was here 



68 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

in camp, small parties went out in all direc- 
tions, for the enemy was near at hand and 
there was always work to be done. If the 
enemy was too numerous and the fight went 
against the band, the men would scatter into 
the forest and find their way back one by one 
through the pathless swamp to the camp. 
Every man was an expert horseman, and they 
trained the horses to swim the streams and 
to pick their way through drowned lands 
and swampy thickets. Marion himself rode 
a fine horse which he had taken from a cap- 
tured Tory captain. The horse became al- 
most as famous as the man. He took to the 
water as though it were his native element, 
and the other horses of the brigade learned 
to follow his fearless lead as their riders had 
learned to follow his master. 

A story often told gives us a picture of 
Marion in the Snow's Island camp. A Brit- 
ish officer was sent to arrange with Marion 
for an exchange of prisoners. He was met 
miles from the camp by a small party of 



'* SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS 69 

Marlon's men. They blindfolded him and 
led him by roundabout paths through swamp 
and forest. When his eyes were uncovered, 
the young man stood before Marion, in the 
midst of Marion's band. 

A natural opening in the forest was sur- 
rounded by lofty trees, hung with streaming 
moss. Here under a lofty pine were men 
asleep, resting perhaps after a night raid. 
There were others, mounting in readiness 
for some new venture. Rifles leaned against 
trees. Horses, ready saddled, grazed near 
by. 

The British ofHcer was much impressed by 
the scene and by Marion himself. Marion, 
always courteous, invited the young man to 
dinner. Imagine the British officer's aston- 
ishment to find the meal consisting of only 
roasted sweet potatoes, served on pieces of 
bark. 

The officer's curiosity was sufficient to 
lead him to say, ''But, surely, general, this 
cannot be your ordinary fare." 



JO PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

"Indeed, sir, it is," replied Marion, "and 
we are fortunate on this occasion, entertain- 
ing company, to have more than our usual 
allowance." 

We have no continuous story of the deeds 
of Marion's men ; on the contrary, the many 
stories of their doings are of incidents here 
and there. On one occasion Captain Gavin 
Witherspoon was sent out with four men on 
scout duty. Hard pressed by a band of 
Tories, the five took refuge in the nearest 
swamp. For a while they lay quiet, but at 
length young Gavin stole back in the direc- 
tion of the Tory band from whom they had 
escaped. He had not gone far before he 
heard voices. Peering cautiously through 
the trees, he saw seven men gathered about a 
camp-fire, watching, no doubt, for the return 
of the men they had chased. 

The captain looked long enough to discover 
that the Tories had stacked their guns against 
an uprooted pine tree some little distance 
from their resting place. Then, creeping 



*' SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS 71 

back to his companions, he proposed that they 
attempt a capture. The others objected, 
but the captain had no mind to lose so good 
an opportunity. 

He went back alone and watched the Tory 
camp. At last every man was quiet. They 
must be asleep. So with Indian-like caution 
he crept up to the guns and silently carried 
them off. It required several journeys to 
dispose of them all safely. Then he returned 
and, with levelled rifle, called upon the Tories 
to surrender. 

Stumbling to their feet, half asleep, the 
Tories were powerless without their guns. 
The young captain had seven prisoners when 
his men finally came up. 

This was just the sort of work In which 
Marlon's men delighted. It was only a few 
days after this capture of Witherspoon's that 
Marion himself, with all the force he could 
muster, made a night attack on a large body 
of Tories. The only approach to the Tory 
camp was by way of a plank bridge ; and the 



72 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 




So WITH INDIAN-LIKE CAUTION HE CREPT UP TO THE GUNS AND 
SILENTLY CARRIED THEM OFF. 



"SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS 73 

noise of the horses' feet on the bridge was 
closely followed by an alarm gun in the camp. 
Marion won in the fight that followed, but 
with more loss than he usually suffered. 
After this, the cautious leader carefully 
avoided bridges, or if he must cross them, he 
had the blankets of his men spread on the 
planks to deaden the sound of the horses' 
tread. 

Another midnight raid was made upon a 
party of .Tories who were bringing out from 
Charleston supplies for newly gathered Tory 
bands. The scout had brought in word of 
the muskets with bayonets, ammunition, 
swords and pistols, saddles and bridles to 
be had, if the Tories could be surprised. 
Marion with his men approached the camp. 
There was no guard. Some slept, others 
made merry with wine and cards. Suddenly 
Marion's men were in their midst. There 
was no resistance. The supplies were cap- 
tured with many prisoners. 

There was with Marion a soldier who had 



74 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

won fame early in the war. This was Ser- 
geant Jasper, who with Marion himself had 
taken part in the defence of a fort in Charles- 
ton harbor against nine ships of war. During 
a fierce battle the American flag had been 
shot away from its staff, and had fallen out- 
side the fort. Jasper's name will always be 
remembered for his bravery in springing over 
the rampart to the beach, rescuing the flag, 
and restoring it to its place, — all in direct 
range of the British guns. 

Later the same Sergeant Jasper made him- 
self of great use as a scout. He had a natural 
talent for disguise, which gave him ready 
access to British camps. Twice at least he 
visited a brother who was a Tory and a ser- 
geant in a British regiment. During the 
second of these visits, a small party of Ameri- 
can prisoners was brought in, on the way 
under guard to Savannah. Jasper resolved 
to rescue these prisoners, and with one com- 
panion placed himself in ambush near a 
spring where he believed the party would 



"SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS 75 

halt. Although there were ten guards, the 
rescue was accomplished. 

Jasper did not live to see the end of the war 
and freedom, but died in battle, bravely de- 
fending the colors for which he had so often 
fought. His name lives, however, and will 
live, for his brave deeds. 

The story of one of the successes connected 
with Marion's name tells us also of a patriotic 
South Carolina woman, Mrs. Motte. She 
was a wealthy widow and had just moved into 
a fine new mansion house on a hill which over- 
looked all the country round. Scarcely had 
she finished moving her household goods from 
the old house to the new one, when the Brit- 
ish decided that the new house would make a 
fine fort and sent soldiers to seize it. Mrs. 
Motte had to return to the farm-house, and 
the mansion became Fort Motte. A deep 
trench was dug around it, with a wall at its 
inner edge. The place was held by a gar- 
rison of one hundred and fifty men. 

This fort Marion besieged, with the help 



76 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

of Continental soldiers under Lee. But the 
garrison within refused to surrender, knowing 
that a British force was on the way to aid 
them. If the fort was to be taken by the 
Americans, it must be taken quickly, before 
this force arrived. There seemed no way but 
to set on fire the mansion house, which oc- 
cupied almost every foot of space inside the 
wall. 

Mrs. Motte had been very kind to the 
American officers, and they dreaded to tell her 
that they must burn her house. They little 
knew how ready they would find her to help 
the patriotic cause. She even found for 
them a bow and arrows, brought long ago 
from India, and bade them shoot fire with 
these upon the mansion's roof. 

For this the noon hour was chosen, when the 
hot rays of the sun had dried and heated the 
roof. The bow was put into the hands of 
one of Marion's men ; balls of blazing fire 
were fastened to the arrows ; and, one by one, 
three of these were lodged upon the roof. 



"SWAMP FOX" OF THE CAROLINAS ^J 

The garrison within, seeing their danger, sent 
men to the roof to put out the fire, but Marion's 
one cannon was turned against them, and the 
garrison could only surrender. 

In the last year of the war, the southern 
armies were commanded by Nathanael Greene, 
a fine soldier, second probably only to Wash- 
ington himself in the whole American force. 
Marion ably assisted Greene, and helped to 
clear the way for the final victory. 

It is not in the line of regular battle that 
we remember Marion best. It is not with 
the roll of fife and drum we think of him. 
Instead we picture him finding his way along 
lonely roads by the light of the midnight 
moon. We see him on his faithful steed, 
swimming the river or wading the ford. We 
think of him dashing down without warning 
on some Tory band. With his bravery, we 
remember his fine courtesy and the mercy he 
ever showed to prisoner or fallen foe. No 
deeds of cruelty stain his story. His men 
loved him and served to show their love. He 



78 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



loved his country as they too loved her. 
Together they fought for her and freedom. 
So lived and served Francis Marion, ''the 
swamp fox of the Carolinas." 




The "swamp fox 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN 
WALL 

The English settlers, as you already know, 
made their homes along the Atlantic coast. 
By the time of the Revolution, these settle- 
ments extended in a long line from Maine 
to Georgia. Many of the colonies had been 
granted land from the Atlantic to the Pacific 
Ocean. How far it was from one ocean to the 
other nobody had much idea. These grants 
of land, therefore, meant very little, since 
English settlers clung to the eastern slope of 
the continent. 

There were several reasons for this. The 
Mississippi Valley, you will remember, was 
explored by the French, and they claimed it 
for their king. They made few settlements, 
but their hunters and trappers roamed about 
in the forests, and jealously guarded their 

79 



8o PIONEERS AXD PATRIOTS 

rights there. The French rule, however, was 
a short one; and the English were left in 
possession of the country as far west as the 
great river. Even now the settlers were 
held back. The British government forbade 
their settling in the ''Indian country" beyond 
the mountains, lest home-making there should 
destroy the forests and kill off the game. But 
the greatest reason of all was the mountains 
themselves. None but the hardiest of the 
hunters dared to go far into their dark forests ; 
and so the mountains stood for years like a 
great wall. 

The ''backwoods people," as they were 
called, of the Pennsylvania, Mrginia, and 
North Carolina colonies, pushed farther and 
farther toward the mountains. They made 
little "clearings" in the forest, built their 
rough cabins, and brought up their children 
to fight the wilderness and the Indians. The 
backwoodsman planted corn and vegetables, 
and, if he was not too poor, kept a cow or two, 
hogs, and perhaps sheep. 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 8 1 

He hunted in the forest, bringing home 
venison and bear meat to be dried for winter 
use. He shot wild turkeys, pigeons, and 
squirrels. He learned to creep noiselessly 
upon the game and to imitate the calls of 
beast and bird. He hunted sometimes for 
months at a time, sleeping in the forest and 
living without any food but meat. Then he 
went home, laden with meat and skins. 

The dress of the backwoodsman was not 
unlike that of the Indians. He wore leggings 
and hunting-shirt of fringed buckskin, moc- 
casins and coonskin cap. The hunting-shirt 
reached nearly to his knees, and a broad belt 
served to draw it in about the waist and to 
hold tomahawk and scalping knife. His rifle 
was a clumsy affair, long and heavy. The 
backwoodsman, however, rarely missed his 
aim. 

The log cabin to which the hunter returned 
was sometimes a single room, sometimes It 
contained living room and bedroom, with a 
loft above, reached by a ladder. There were 



82 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

a rough table, three-legged stools, and a 
bed covered with bearskins and deerhides. 
Wooden pegs were driven into the sides of 
the house, to hang clothing upon, but the 
wardrobes of these backwoods people were 
too scanty to require many pegs. 

The people of these scattered backwoods 
clearings learned to depend upon their own 
work for food and clothing ; but they also 
learned to help each other. When a cabin 
was to be built, the neighbors gathered to 
lift the heavy logs to their places ; when the 
harvest season came, they gathered to help 
shuck the corn. There were housewarmings 
and quiltings. These were all regarded as 
merrymakings, and the guests rode up from 
all the country round. The work, whether 
husking or house-raising, was done with much 
rough fun and frolic. Then there were tables 
laden with bear meat, venison, vegetables, 
wild fruits, and, as an especial luxury, apple- 
pie. There were also rum and whiskey, and 
hard drinking. Sometimes there were fights 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 83 

among the men. The victor would be 
immensely proud of himself, jumping on a 
stump, where he crowed lustily and flapped 
his arms, like a quarrelsome rooster. Usually 
the gayety was concluded by a dance for the 




Daniel Boone's cabin. 

young people, after which the guests mounted 
their horses and galloped off home. The 
pleasures of these hardy people were rough, 
as their toil was. They themselves were 
honest and hardworking and brave. No 
other kind of people could have lived in such 



84 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



surroundings. We must not forget the con- 
stant danger from the Indians, who never 
lost a chance to injure the whites who were 

stealing their hunt- 
ing-grounds. 

In such a back- 
woods home as 
these I have de- 
scribed was born 
Daniel Boone, one 
of the famous hunt- 
ers and frontiers- 
men of the early 
days. His earliest 
home was in Penn- 
sylvania, but while 
he was still a boy, 
his people moved, 
as the backwoods 
folk so often did, 
to what they thought was a better place for a 
home. This was in North Carolina. Here 
Boone grew up, married, built his log cabin. 




HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 8$ 

and began life for himself. Hunting, in 
which all backwoodsmen were expert, was 
to Boone the only occupation which seemed 
worth while. He went farther and farther 
into the mountains. There is an old beech 
tree still standing in eastern Tennessee which 
bears these words cut deeply into its bark : 
"D. Boon cilled a bar on this tree year 
1760." 

It was not long before he left his home on a 
''long hunt," in which he hoped to reach the 
''country of Kentucky," of which he had 
heard. With four companions he pressed 
forward through the thick forests. The 
beautiful summer was just beginning when 
they reached the place of which they were 
in search. No longer were there woods on 
every hand. Running streams and rolling 
prairies were seen as well as forest; and the 
hunters had never found game in such abun- 
dance as they saw it here. 

There were salt springs which the hunters 
called "licks," because the wild beasts came 



86 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



to them and licked the earth to get salt. To 
these licks came huge herds of buffalo, elk, 
and deer. There were also bears, wolves, 
and panthers. 

For six months Boone and his companions 
hunted and gathered great quan- 
tities of skins as well as the meat 
for their daily food. No Indian 
tribes lived here. It was a sort 
of "no man's land," in which 
all hunted and which each de- 
sired to keep as his own hunting- 
ground. The white hunters soon 
came to know that they would 
find no friendly Indians — for 
every Indian was an enemy to 
any hunter outside his own tribe. 
As winter approached, Boone and one 
companion were captured, but managed to 
escape. When they returned to their camp 
they found that their companions had gone ; it 
was not long, however, before Boone's brother 
joined him, and later other hunters came. 




HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 87 

Sometimes Boone was alone for months 
at a time ; but he was happy without com- 
panions, hunting and exploring the country. 
He always had to be on the watch for Indians, 
and many nights he lay hidden in the thickets, 
not daring to build a fire lest the Indians 
should follow the smoke. Two years Boone 
spent in this fashion before he returned to his 
North Carolina home. 

As the hunters in the Kentucky country 
grew more numerous, there was constant 
war between red men and white. Each 
hunted the other in much the same way in 
which both hunted the forest animals. Many 
a hunter was killed because he followed 
sounds which seemed to him the call of bird 
or beast. There is a story of one old hunter 
who listened in the dusk of evening to the 
hooting of the owls in the forest. At first 
the calls seemed natural enough, but soon he 
doubted them, especially because they seemed 
to come from the ground instead of the trees. 
He crept nearer, watching not for owls, but 



88 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

Indians. An old stump showing dimly in 
the shadows between two forked tree trunks, 
fixed his attention. Was it a stump, or a 
crouching man ^ He aimed, and fired. The 
"stump" toppled and fell, — a dead Indian. 
Indeed the wilderness was full of dangers, 
from beasts as well as men. The ground 
around some of the licks was so trodden that 
the paths of the beasts were like the beaten 
roads of a city. When a great herd of buffalo 
started on a mad rush over prairie or through 
the forest, a man had little chance unless he 
could get out of the way. Once two hunters 
were thus caught in a "stampede.'' One 
scrambled up into a mulberr)' bush, where 
he hung, "like a coon,'' his companion says, 
and the other could onK' leap behind a tree 
trunk, where he stood while the herd rushed 
by, with their horns scraping on either side. 
It was a narrow escape for both men. A 
village of Kentucky to-day bears a constant 
reminder of the buffalo in its name, — 
"Stamping Ground." 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 89 

In 1773 Daniel Boone sold his North 
Carolina home, and set out with his family 
to make a new home in the Kentucky wilder- 
ness. Five other families and forty men 
accompanied them. In the mountains the 
party was attacked by Indians, six men were 
killed and the cattle scattered. For a time 
the journey to the west was given up. 

But in 1775 Boone with thirty men set 
out to clear a path across the mountains to 
the Kentucky River, and not far behind came 
a party of settlers. The path Boone cleared 
was long known as the Wilderness Road, and 
many thousands of people travelled over it 
to new western homes. 

Reaching a spot suitable for a settlement, 
Boone's party began the building of a fort. 
The place chosen was an open plain near the 
Kentucky River and a lick. The fort was 
an oblong enclosure, with a stout two-storied 
blockhouse at each corner and a high stockade 
or fence of heavy timbers. The cabins were 
built with the back wall forming part of the 



90 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

stockade. In time of danger the cattle were 
driven into the open space inside the fort, 
and the gates were closed and barred. 

Each settler had land outside the fort, 
which he cleared and planted, and upon which 
he lived, when he dared do so. This settle- 
ment of Boone's was called Boonesborough. 
Other forts were built, and other settlements 
begun in Kentucky at about this time. 

Even before homes were made in Kentucky, 
the first settlements had been made in 
Tennessee. They were made by the same 
sort of backwoodsmen, who lived beyond the 
mountains the same sort of lives their fathers 
had lived before them in the foothills of the 
Alleghanies. The great leaders of the 
Tennessee settlements were James Robertson 
and John Sevier. 

North of the Ohio River lay what the French 
had long called the Illinois country. There 
were a few scattered French trading-posts 
and settlements among the Indians of this 
section. The largest of these were Vincennes 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 91 

on the Wabash River, and Kaskaskia and 
Cahokia on the Mississippi. When the 
French lost their territory to the English, 
some of the French settlers at these places 
crossed the Mississippi and made new homes. 
But most of them remained, living quiet, 
peaceful lives on their little farms. 

The English government paid little attention 
to these Frenchmen and the Indians among 
whom they dwelt, until the Revolution. Then 
British soldiers were sent to them, and to 
the Indians, to gain their help against the 
Americans. It was easy for these British 
soldiers to win the friendship of the Indians. 
The red man hated the white settler and the 
white hunter. The white soldier promised 
him that settlers and hunters should not 
steal his hunting-grounds. The white soldier 
bought his furs, paying in the sort of goods 
the Indian most of all desired. The white 
soldier brought plenty of ''fire-water" for 
his red brother. The red men were glad to 
fight for the white soldier's king. 



92 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

General Hamilton, who commanded the 
British soldiers in these northwestern posts, 
sent out many Indian war parties to lay waste 
the young settlements in Kentucky and 
Tennessee. Massacres and scalpings were 
reported on every hand. The *'hair buyer" 
General Hamilton was scornfully called, 
because he offered to pay the Indians for 
American scalps — from the heads not only 
of men, but of women and children. - 

How were the struggling settlements to 
protect themselves ^ How could the older 
colonies, fighting the great fight for inde- 
pendence, spare men to protect them ? It 
was hard to say. 

Among the backwoodsmen of Kentucky 
was a young man who had left his home in 
Virginia for the frontier settlements. Except 
Daniel Boone, probably no man in Kentucky 
was better known or more trusted than 
George Rogers Clark. 

The Kentucky settlements were on ground 
claimed by Virginia, so it was decided by 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 93 

the Kentuckians to send men to ask the Vir- 
ginian governor to help them in their struggle 
against the Indians. Clark was one of the 
two Kentuckians sent on this errand. They 
asked that the riflemen of Kentucky be given 
a part in the war, and that five hundred 
pounds of gunpowder be sent them to fight 
with. The governor started to refuse the 
powder, but Clark broke in, saying, "A 
country not worth defending is not worth 
claiming." The governor, who had no desire 
to see Kentucky lost to Virginia, changed 
his mind. 

The following year (1777) saw more Indian 
war parties than ever. It seemed as though 
the struggling western settlements would 
be entirely wiped out. 

Clark burned to punish the red murderers 
and the British soldiers who were urging them 
to their cruel deeds. He sent scouts to learn 
how strong the British were in the Illinois 
country, and, on their return, he went again 
to the Virginian governor. 



94 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

After a long talk with the governor, Clark 
turned westward once more. He had been 
made a colonel of Virginian militia, and was 
given power to raise seven companies of 
fifty men each in the settlements west of the 
mountains. He carried instructions to use 
these soldiers for the protection of Kentucky ; 
and carefully hidden in a safe inner pocket 
he had also secret orders to enter the Illinois 
country and attack Kaskaskia. 

It would be a long story to tell you how 
Clark gathered men and supplies, how he 
embarked in flatboats at the head waters 
of the Ohio River, how he drifted down 
beyond the Kentucky, and finally landed, 
one hundred and thirty miles from Kaskaskia, 
marching across the country in order to sur- 
prise the town. 

In the fort at Kaskaskia, the ofiicers were 
giving a dance to the young people of the 
town. The hall was lighted by flaring torches ; 
the music of the violins sounded merrily; 
the floor was thronged with gay young dancers. 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 95 

An Indian — there were always friendly 
Indians about — lay upon the floor by the 
door, watching the dance. 

Suddenly a wild war-whoop sounded through 
the room. The friendly Indian had jumped 
to his feet, shouting defiance to a man in 
the doorway. It was Colonel Clark, standing 
quietly with folded arms. Now if there was 
one thing ^ of which these French villagers 
stood in fear, it was an American backwoods- 
man ; and terror took deep hold of the dancers. 
Clark bade them go on with their dancing, if 
they chose. ''But, remember," he added, 
''it is under the flag of Virginia you dance, 
not that of Great Britain." 

Meanwhile Clark's men had overrun the 
fort and had seized the commandant. Mes- 
sengers hurried through the town, ordering 
every one to remain within his house, unless 
he would be shot. In the morning, the peaple 
were forced to give up their arms. They were 
overcome with terror. The fame of the 
"Long Knives," as the Indians called the 



96 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

backwoodsmen, had gone before them. All 
expected death or slavery. 

A group of the leading men came to Clark 
to beg for mercy. When Clark assured them 
that he meant them no harm, their terror 
was suddenly turned to joy, and all the village 
was ready to promise friendship to the new 
American nation. 

The priest was surprised when Colonel 
Clark freely granted him permission to open 
his church as usual. "An American com- 
mander has nothing to do with any church 
save to defend it from insult," said Colonel 
Clark. 

The only person who does not seem to 
have entered into the general rejoicing was 
the commandant of the fort. His reply 
to Colonel Clark's invitation to dinner shows 
that he must have been very much out of 
temper indeed. Clark promptly sent him a 
prisoner to Virginia. No one else received 
anything but kindness from Clark. 

The capture of Kaskaskia is only the begin- 



HOMES BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WALL 97 

ning of the story. Cahokia, farther up the 
river, was easily won to friendship, and also 
VIncennes, but the struggle came when Gen- 
eral Hamilton, ''the hair buyer," appeared 
to punish the bold Americans. 

At VIncennes a single American officer 
and one soldier occupied the fort. General 
Hamilton demanded Its surrender, never 
dreaming that there were but two men inside. 
The officer with lighted torch In hand stood 
beside the cannon he had wheeled Into the 
open gateway. General Hamilton imagined 
scores of "Long Knives" out of sight behind 
him ; and when the American officer agreed 
to surrender the fort, British soldiers and 
painted Indians drew up In long lines to let the 
Americans pass out with "the honors of war" 
which the American officer had demanded. 
Then the two solemnly marched forth. 

Clark, however, had no Idea of giving up 
VIncennes to Hamilton. Although it was 
winter, he at once marched to take it back. 
The journey was a hard one, through mud and 



98 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

over ice, flooded meadows and prairie land. 
The men suffered from lack of food as well 
as from cold. But they went on bravely, sur- 
prised the town, and defeated the British. 

The value of what Clark had done was 
seen when the war for independence was 
ended. The northwest — between the Ohio 
and the Great Lakes — was won for freedom 
and the new nation, by his bravery. Clark 
was a typical backwoodsman. What we owe 
to these men we must never forget. With axe 
and rifle they made their way into untried 
wildernesses. They made homes and boldly 
defended them. They brought to the Ameri- 
can nation the great wealth of the "old 
northwest." 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 

In my childhood my daily walk to school 
led me to the neighborhood of a group of 
streets whose names by their very unfamiliar 
sound were easily fixed in my attention : 
"Lafayette, Kosciusko, De Kalb, Pulaski." 
Sometimes I wondered at their strange foreign 
sound and wondered too why streets in an 
American city should receive such names. 

It was, therefore, a pleasure to discover that 
Pulaski, De Kalb, Kosciusko, and Lafayette 
were Revolutionary heroes, and that their 
strange foreign-sounding names told stories 
of the homes beyond the sea from which they 
came to fight for American liberty. Thus 
my wonder was satisfied, but my interest 
iremained. 

When war broke out between the English 
government and the English colonies in 
America, many European officers came to 

99 



lOO 



PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 



take a part in the fighting. Some came be- 
cause they wished to win military glory ; some, 
because at that time the armies of Europe 
were lying idle and their officers longed 
for battle somew^here ; and some, because 
they wished to help America and see her win. 
Of the many, the four I have mentioned, 

and one more. Baron 
Steuben, are best 
known and most 
gratefully remem- 
bered. Of the 
five, the name of 
Lafayette stands 
first. 

Although only a 
boy of nineteen 
when he first heard 
of the rebellion of 
England's colonies, 
he was already a soldier and an officer. Be- 
longing to one of the most distinguished 
families of the French nobility and pos- 




LaFAYETTE, the " FRENCH BOY." 



( 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA loi 

sessed of a large fortune, the young man 
seemed to have a brilliant career before him. 
He was already married, and his home life 
was extremely happy. Yet he left home 
and position to help the struggling Ameri- 
cans. More than that, he came to America 
against the wishes of the king. Indeed the 
king forbade his coming, lest the anger of 
England should be aroused against France. 

But neither the command of the king nor 
the entreaties of his relatives could move the 
young man's determination. He seems to 
have had an inborn love for liberty; the 
story of America's fight for freedom roused 
in him a desire which he could not conquer. 

It was no easy matter for the young noble- 
man to escape the watchful eyes of the king's 
officers. Indeed he had some exciting adven- 
tures before he was able to get away. He 
had bought a vessel for the voyage, and at 
last, with eleven other officers who wished to 
join the Americans, he set sail from a Spanish 
port in 1777. 



I02 PIONKERS AND PATRIOTS 

Landing near Charleston, in South Carolina, 
the officers hurried to Philadelphia to offer 
their services to Congress. Lafayette was 
made a major-general and at once joined 
Washington's army. Washington was kind 
to the young foreigner from the first, and 
soon there sprang up between them a strong 
and steadfast friendship, which nothing 
changed nor lessened as years passed by. 

In his first battle Lafayette was slightly 
wounded ; and he wrote to his wife describing 
Washington's care and affectionate interest. 
" When he sent his best surgeon to me," he 
wrote, "he told him to take charge of me as 
if I were his son, because he loved me with the 
same affection." 

As winter approached, Washington led 
his army into winter quarters at Valley 
Forge. Lafayette was now in command of a 
division of this army. He describes the 
condition of the men in another letter: ''The 
unfortunate soldiers were in want of every- 
thing; they had not coats, hats, shirts, nor 



\ 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 103 

shoes. . . . The army frequently remained 
whole days without provisions." 

In another letter he spoke of his division 
as ''almost in a state of nakedness ; but I am 
promised cloth," he continued, ''of which I 
shall make clothes." He went on to say he 
was also promised more men, "of which I 
must make soldiers, this being unfortunately 
a more difficult task." 

Lafayette seems to have been modestly 
conscious of his lack of age and experience. 
He says, "I read, I study, I examine, I listen, 
I reflect; I will not talk much, for fear of 
saying foolish things ; I will still less risk 
acting much, for fear of doing foolish things — 
but when some plans occur to me which I 
believe may become useful when properly 
rectified, I hasten to impart them to a great 
judge, who is good enough to say he is pleased 
with them." 

A story is told of Lafayette at this time 
which shows that he w^as quite able to make 
plans which were useful, in spite of his youth. 



I04 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

Valley Forge was only about twenty miles 
from Philadelphia, and while the American 
soldiers had been suffering in one place, the 
British had passed a comfortable, indeed a 
gay winter in the other. It was nearly sum- 
mer again when Washington sent Lafayette 
with two thousand men to march toward 
Philadelphia. He was to cross the Schuylkill 
River and take up a position where he could 
keep watch of the movements of the British. 

Accordingly he took possession of Barren 
Hill, about halfway between Philadelphia 
and Valley Forge. 

British scouts, discovering him there, has- 
tened to the city with the news. General 
Howe, the British commander, was a guest 
that evening at a fine military ball. He was 
pleased to hear of the approach of the young 
French general. He was sure he could cap- 
ture him and his men. So sure was he that 
he went about inviting the fair Tory ladies 
at the ball to a banquet the next evening 
at his house, ''to meet the Marquis de 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 105 

Lafayette." Already he thought of the mar- 
quis as his prisoner. 

Next morning the British force selected 
to make the capture marched off gayly toward 
Barren Hill. It was all so easy. One divi- 
sion should hold the ford, to prevent the 
retreat of the ''French boy" across the river. 
One division should march around the hill, 
and one should remain on the nearer side. 
Then the two should march up, and between 
them at the top would be Lafayette and his 
two thousand men. 

American scouts brought word to Lafayette 
that the British were coming. Though this 
was not pleasant news, the young general 
had no idea of being captured. Fortunately 
he knew another ford, but the time in which 
to reach it was short. Indeed the red coats 
were in sight. 

Boldly Lafayette advanced toward them 
with a few of his men, while all the rest were 
hurried toward the ford. The British ad- 
vanced toward Lafayette's bold front. Sud- 



io6 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

denly the American columns were drawn 
back and vanished over the hill. The two 
British divisions pushed faster up the opposite 
sides of the hill. They reached the top. 
They met. But no "French boy" was 
between them. And at the banquet that 
night the Tory ladies did not meet the Mar- 
quis de Lafayette. 

Later in the year, when the British had 
gone back to New York and Washington's 
army stood guard over them from New Jersey 
to West Point on the Hudson, Lafayette 
went home to France. The French govern- 
ment had already agreed to help the struggling 
American nation, and Lafayette found the 
French people friendly to everything 
American. 

They were very proud of the young mar- 
quis, upon whom honors were showered by 
the king, the queen, and all the court. As for 
Lafayette himself, he could talk of nothing 
but America and the Americans. He told of 
the suffering of the army and of the brave 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 107 

endurance of the men. He told about the 
lack of money to carry on the war, and the 
lack of clothing and supplies. • He told the 
fine ladies and gentlemen of the court that 
the cost of a single royal ball in the king's 
palace would buy clothes and comforts for 
the whole American army. He told them 
about Washington, the great general, his 
friend. He asked the king to send land sol- 
diers to America in addition to the French 
warships which were already in American 
waters. 

Happy indeed was Lafayette when he 
received instructions from the king to return 
to America. He was to proceed immediately 
to join General Washington, and ''to com- 
municate to him the secret that the king, 
willing to give the United States a new proof 
of his affection and of his interest in their 
security, is resolved to send to their aid, at 
the opening of spring, six vessels of the line 
and six thousand regular troops of infantry." 

Returning at once to America, Lafayette 



lo8 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

remained until the fighting was over. His 
part in the later years of the war you will 
find in your histories. His first longing to 
fight for liberty remained as long as there was 
fighting to do. He proved himself a gallant 
soldier, an able general, and a true friend. 

Lafayette's fame in his own country now 
knew no bounds ; and he left behind in 
America the truest of gratitude and admira- 
tion. His friendship with Washington suf- 
fered no change from separation. Frequent 
letters passed between them. Washington 
returned to his farm at Mount Vernon, and 
from there went at his country's call to the 
Presidential chair. Lafayette busied himself 
on his estates with plans for future useful- 
ness, from which he was called by revolution 
in his own land. Although he was rich and a 
noble by birth, he joined the poor and down- 
trodden in France who fought for liberty. 

Some day you will read the story of the 
French Revolution and of the part Lafayette 
had in it. He had seen freedom won by the 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 109 

Americans ; and he knew how much worse 
was the condition of the common people in 
his own country. He upheld their fight for 
liberty, but the Revolution in France became 
a wild and awful time. The most dreadful 
deeds were done in the name of liberty. At 
first Lafayette was a leader, but the time 
came when the people threw aside all obedi- 
ence to law and order and Lafayette could 
no longer fight with them. Then they turned 
upon him, and his life was in danger. 

He fled, but was captured, and lay in an 
Austrian prison for five weary years. Re- 
leased at last, he returned to France, where 
after many years he saw at least the begin- 
ning of real freedom for the people. 

He lived a long and useful life, during which 
he never forgot his early battles in America 
nor his friendship for the American people. 
Forty years after the independence of America 
had been won, Lafayette returned to visit 
the scenes of his youthful glory. President 
Monroe had invited him to be the nation's guest. 



no PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

From the moment he landed in New York 
he was surrounded by welcoming crowds 
who lost no chance to show their love and 
honor for the nation's friend. Cannon 
boomed, and thousands cheered the fine old 
man wherever he appeared. As he went 
from city to city, everywhere the people made 
a holiday in which to greet him. 

Washington had long been dead, and his 
friend could only weep beside his tomb. Few 
indeed of the Revolutionary heroes were 
left, but these came to take Lafayette's hand, 
or he went to them. The country had 
changed in forty years, and Lafayette went 
from state to state to see the new cities, the 
fine farms, and the comfortable homes. He 
was in America through the excitement of a 
presidential election, and he spent the last 
days of his visit in the White House in Wash- 
ington as the guest of the new President. 
For more than a year he had been in the United 
States, and had received every honor the 
American people could devise. 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA in 

Lafayette has been called ''a man of two 
worlds," and surely it is true that both the 
old world and the new are better for his love 
of liberty. His name stands high on the roll 
of freedom's soldiers. 

No other friend from Europe won quite 
the place in American hearts that Lafayette 
did. Perhaps it was partly his youth and 
position — what he gave up — that first at- 
tracted attention to the man. Others fought 
bravely too. Pulaski and Kosciusko were 
soldiers from Poland, who had fought for 
the freedom of their own land and had seen 
it crushed by strong and cruel conquerors. 
They came to America, seeking for freedom 
here since it was lost at home. Both were 
brave officers. Pulaski fell in battle, a true 
soldier of liberty to the last. Kosciusko 
lived, and after the war returned to Poland, 
where, like Lafayette, he became a leader of 
his people. But his efforts to free Poland were 
in vain. He was captured and imprisoned in 
Russia. When the Russian Czar gave him 



112 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

his freedom, after two years In prison, the 
Czar handed Kosciusko a sword. But Kos- 
ciusko refused It, saying, *'I need no sword. 
I have no longer any country to defend." 

These three — Lafayette, Pulaski, and Kos- 
ciusko — were all young men. De Kalb and 
Steuben were older. Indeed, De Kalb was 
a soldier before any of the younger group was 
born. Although a German, he had been In 
the service of France for many years, and had 
once been sent to the English colonies In 
America on business for the French king. 
He was one of the eleven officers who came 
to America with Lafayette, and he, like 
Pulaski, gave his life for the country he had 
come to help. 

Of all the five, Steuben alone remained in 
America after the war, making It his home. 
He had come from Prussia, where his young 
manhood had been spent In the army of 
Frederick the Great, the Prussian king. Steu- 
ben had proved himself an excellent ofiicer 
and had been honored by a high place on the 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 113 

king's own staff. Frederick was a great 
soldier and possessed an army that was 
probably better drilled than any other in 
Europe. To have held high place under him 
was evidence of Steuben's ability. 

He offered his services to the American 
Congress in the winter of 1777 and was sent 
at once to join Washington's army at Valley 
Forge. Here he found a difficult task await- 
ing him. Washington was anxious to make 
use of Steuben's knowledge in instructing 
the soldiers, many of whom knew very little 
about military drill. Steuben was, there- 
fore, made inspector general of the army. 

This office gave him the care of arms and 
equipment as well as instruction of the men. 
He was well fitted for the task, discouraging 
as it was. Men were without clothes, with- 
out shoes, without arms. Many were sick, 
and all were discouraged. 

Steuben began work at once, with what 
men he could muster. From the first he 
kept careful account of all supplies and insisted 



114 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 




The drill began in earnest. 



that the men should keep their arms In perfect 
condition. They had been accustomed to 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 115 

no such care before. This alone made a 
great difference in the efficiency of the army. 

When spring came, newly enlisted soldiers 
joined the army, and some supplies were 
received. The drill began in earnest. Every 
day, unless the weather was bad, the old 
general rose at three o'clock in the morning, 
and at sunrise might be found on horseback, 
galloping to' the parade ground. First of all 
came inspection of the men and their arms. 
This was no rapid riding in front of the line, 
but a careful examination of every man. 
Then came the drill. At first Steuben could 
not make the men understand the movements 
he desired, or the orders he gave, since he 
could speak very little English. A young 
officer who could speak French as well as 
English came to his assistance, and things 
went better. 

"If I had seen an angel from heaven," 
said the old Baron, in telling the story, "I 
should not have been more rejoiced." 

Many stories are told of the Baron's hot 



Il6 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

temper and also of his kind heart. Some- 
times the awkwardness of the men would 
move him to the most violent of language, 
until he had exhausted all the exclamations 
he could think of in German, French, and 
English. Then he would call upon his aids 
to help him think of more names to call 
them. His bursts of temper, however, had 
little eifect on the affection the men came to 
feel for him. Always kind to those in dis- 
tress and generous to all, he made friends 
everywhere. The young officers who were 
his aids loved him and continued to devote 
themselves to him after the war was over, 
indeed as long as he lived. 

Many stories are told of his hospitable 
habits. He made a point of inviting to his 
table not only the higher officers in camp, 
but those of lesser rank. "Poor fellows," he 
would say, ''they have field officers' stomachs, 
without their pay or rations." 

When the French soldiers had come to the 
aid of the Americans and were encamped 



FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA 117 

near them, the Baron was disturbed because 
none of the American officers except Wash- 
ington could afford to entertain them. 

"We are constantly feasted by the French, 
without their receiving any invitation in 
return except from headquarters. I can stand 
it no longer. I shall give one grand dinner 
to our allies, should I eat my soup with a 
wooden spoon forever after." To do it, he 
sold part of his camp furniture. 

It was not long before the effects of Steu- 
ben's drill began to show upon the men. All 
through the long spring months he went on 
with his work. He taught officers as well 
as men. As a result of his training, the army 
that came out from Valley Forge bore little 
resemblance to the one which had gone in 
in the dark days of winter. 

When the war was over, Steuben made 
his home in western New York on land the 
state had given him. Here he built a log 
house, and lived surrounded by his books, 
and often visited by his faithful young friends 



Ii8 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

of the war time. After some years Congress 
voted to give him a pension of twenty-five 
hundred dollars a year. A few years later 
he died and was buried by his own wish in 
the forest near his last home. 

The work he did was of great benefit to the 
cause for which Americans fought. The gal- 
lant old general, with his kind heart and his 
desire to make those around him happy is 
surely a pleasant figure to find a place in our 
book of heroes. May we cherish his memory 
with that of Lafayette, — both true friends 
of America and of liberty. 



ISRAEL ISRAEL'S EXPERIENCE WITH 
THE TORIES 

In the early twilight of a winter afternoon 
in 1777, a young man walked rapidly along 
the road from Wilmington to Philadelphia. 
He was closely wrapped in a large cloak, 
inside which he carried various bundles and 
packages, including a small bag of money. 
He was clearly anxious to reach his journey's 
end, yet as he approached the ferry, he lin- 
gered along the road until darkness fell and 
the lights of the city began to appear in the 
distance. Then under the friendly cover of 
the darkness, he walked boldly toward the 
British sentinel who guarded the ferry en- 
trance. 

Philadelphia was at this time in the hands 

of the British General Howe, and his soldiers 

were quartered in the city. The Tories of 

Philadelphia were joyful indeed because of 

119 



I20 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

the presence of the British, but Whigs un- 
fortunate enough to remain suffered incon- 
venience and sometimes real hardship. 
Among the Whig families thus suffering were 
the mother and sisters of the young man at 
the ferry ; and his present journey was to 
carry them relief. 

Hailed by the British sentinel with the 
customary question, *'Who goes there .^" the 
young man promptly answered, ''A friend," 
and when further questioned, gave quite 
as promptly the British countersign for the 
night. 

''Pass, friend !" said the sentinel. The 
young man hurried on, glad to escape his 
searching eyes. 

This man, Israel Israel, was the elder of 
two sons of a widowed mother. When. war 
broke out, both of the brothers desired to 
fight for liberty, but the aged mother, two 
sisters and Israel's young wife seemed to 
need the protection and support of one of 
the young men, and it was decided that one 



EXPERIENCE WITH THE TORIES 121 

must remain at home. It was hard to choose 
between them. It was finally settled that 
they should draw lots, and this ended in the 
lot's falling upon Joseph, the younger brother, 
who therefore went to fight. 

Israel continued to live upon his little farm 
in Wilmington, making frequent visits to 
the old mother and sisters in Philadelphia. 
Since the British had seized the city, only 
''king's men," or loyalists, were permitted 
to pass in and out. Israel heard strange 
stories of the rough treatment Whigs within 
the city were receiving, and he grew daily 
more fearful. He tried to devise some way 
to get inside the British lines. 

At length help came from an unexpected 
source. A Tory neighbor, knowing of Israel's 
longing to learn how his mother was faring, 
obtained for him the British countersign; 
and thankfully accepting his neighbor's kind- 
ness, Israel had passed the sentinel, as we 
have seen, and was soon walking rapidly in 
the direction of his mother's house. 



122 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

Once within, the young man was relieved 
to find his mother and sisters well, though 
sorely in need of the supplies he had brought. 
Soldiers were quartered in the house, they 
told him, and the timid women were very 
weary of their rough, noisy ways. Then 
cautiously they led Israel to an inner room, 
where he was surprised to find a soldier in 
Continental uniform. 

''Why, 'tis Joe," he cried, and the brothers 
clasped hands joyfully. ''How did you get 
here, man?" asked Israel. "Did some Tory 
friend help you as mine helped me .^" 

'"Tis too long a tale to tell," answered 
Joseph. '"Tis enough that I am here. 
Indeed I must soon be gone. I must be far 
from the city before light." 

It was fully eleven o'clock when the happily 
united family sat down to supper, still talking 
busily of their experiences in these trying 
times. Suddenly the tramp of horses in the 
street without was followed by loud knock- 
ing at the door. In a moment Joseph had 



EXPERIENCE WITH THE TORIES 123 

left his untasted supper, for to be caught here 
in Continental uniform meant imprisonment 
and perhaps worse. 

The rest rushed after him up the stairs, 
helped him out of the telltale uniform, and 
saw him safely out of sight on the roof before 
they descended to open to the pounding, 
shouting soldiers below. 

It was Israel himself who unbarred the 
door. Upon him the soldiers rushed, shouting, 
''Now we have him, the rebel rascal !" 

"Who calls me a rebel ?" calmly asked the 
young man, shaking off the rough hand of 
the Hessian sergeant who commanded the 
group. 

"Your own slave admits it," answered 
the sergeant, pointing to an old negro who 
stood with hanging head in the doorway. 

The master fixed his keen eye upon the 
trembling slave, as he said carelessly, "There's 
a mistake here, gentlemen. It's my brother, 
Joe, you're looking for, no doubt. He fights 
in the rebel army. But he isn't here." And 



124 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

as he spoke, Israel could only hope his words 
were true, and that Joe was indeed some dis- 
tance away by this time. 

''Stay," he added, as if a new thought 
had just come to him, ''I believe an old uni- 
form of Joe's has been left in the house. I'll 
get it, and you may see for yourselves whether 
I'm its rebel owner." 

So, still calmly, he went upstairs, and 
returned with the garments so lately thrown 
aside by the escaping soldier. Now it chanced 
that Joe was a small man, while Israel was tall 
and broad, quite a giant in fact. Even the 
soldiers could only laugh when Israel strug- 
gled, but all in vain, to get into the uniform. 

The sergeant made all due apologies, and 
dismissing his men, proposed that, since 
supper was on the table, he stay and share 
It. Little as the family desired his presence, 
they dared not object, and they made a 
place for the self-invited guest. 

When the officer had taken his departure, 
Israel bade his mother and sisters good-by, 



EXPERIENCE WITH THE TORIES 125 




Even the soldiers could only laugh when Israel struggled, 
but all in vain, to get into the uniform. 

and set out upon his homeward journey. 
Passing the sentinel safely, he tramped the 
thirty miles between the ferry and his home, 



126 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

arriving weary, but relieved that his dangerous 
errand was safely accomplished. 

At home, however, he met fresh difficulties. 
The friendly Tory who had given him the 
countersign proved far from friendly at heart, 
for he had betrayed the secret of the journey 
to the British, and now Israel found himself 
arrested and accused of entering the British 
lines as a spy. 

Together with his wife's brother, the young 
man was carried off to a British warship in 
the Delaware, to be tried for his life. While 
it was not true that he was a spy, his activity 
in the patriot cause could not be denied, and 
his Tory neighbors were more than ready 
to testify against him. 

The Roebuck, on which the prisoners were 
confined, lay not far from the town, directly 
opposite, it happened, to Israel's little farm. 
As he lay on the deck, on the coil of rope which 
was his only bed, he could see the. lights in 
his windows, telling of the lonely young wife 
within the house^, trembling for his safety. 



EXPERIENCE WITH THE TORIES 127 

Only nineteen years old, she was now left 
quite unprotected. 

In the morning, Israel saw his cattle driven 
out upon the meadow by the riverside and 
knew the brave wife was caring as she could 
for the home in his absence. His enemies 
were on hand early with their tales of his evil 
deeds. He had been a rebel from the first, 
they said. He had given no provisions for 
the use of his Majesty's soldiers and fleet. 
Indeed he had been heard to say he would 
sooner drive his cattle as a present to General 
Washington than to sell them for a cartload of 
British gold. 

"Indeed," said the commander of the 
Roebuck. "And where are these precious 
cattle.?" 

"There, on the meadow, sir, in plain sight," 
responded the Tory informers. Then the 
commander sternly ordered men ashore to 
drive the cattle down to the river, where 
they should be slaughtered before their rebel 
owner's eyes. 



128 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

The young wife, having risen at dawn, was 
watching eagerly from an upper window of 
the farm-house for some sign of her husband's 
fate. She saw the soldiers rowed ashore 
from the ship, saw them land and march 
toward the meadow. Guessing their errand, 
she ran down with a sudden determination 
to resist. 

No one was in sight to help her but the 
small boy who had driven the cows to the 
pasture, and he was only eight years old. 
Calling him to follow, she started for the 
pasture, and, pulling down the bars, ran to 
drive the cattle out. With the small boy 
who helped valiantly, she soon started the 
herd in the right direction. The soldiers 
were coming nearer now and were shouting 
angrily that they would fire, — and fire they 
did. By this time Mrs. Israel was thoroughly 
aroused, and she only called back, "Fire 
away ! " while she ran hither and thither with 
the boy, guiding the frightened cattle. 

With the balls falling around them, the 



EXPERIENCE WITH THE TORIES 129 

young woman and the little boy braved death 
In defence of those rebel cattle. ''This way, 
Joe ! Head them this way ! Don't let a 
single one escape." With the last one through 
the bars, Mrs. Israel caught up the little boy, 
stumbling in his terror, and fastened the 
cattle securely in the barnyard. 

The soldiers, perhaps a little ashamed of 
making war upon a woman and a child, turned 
back to the ship. On the deck of the Roebuck 
officers and prisoners had watched the scene, 
and the prisoners at least must have gloried 
in the courage shown by the young wife. 
The trial went on, but strange to say, the 
officers for some reason changed their harsh 
attitude toward the prisoners and sent them 
home free men. They even rebuked the 
Tories who had accused a man bound on a 
peaceful errand of duty to his old mother. 
Israel went home in honor on a splendid 
barge, with presents for his brave wife from 
the officers of the Roebuck^ British man-of- 
war. 



ANOTHER OF MARION'S MEN 

"Dorcas! Dorcas!" called a faint voice 
below the window of Mrs. Dorcas Richard- 
son's bedroom. ''Open the door for me, 
Dorcas !" 

Mrs. Richardson started up from her bed, 
listening intently. ''Perhaps I only dreamed 
it," she said to herself, "but indeed I thought 
I heard Dick's voice." And as she heard 
the call a second time, she hastily put on 
wrapper and slippers and hurried to the great 
front door. 

Pushing aside the heavy bolts, she swung 
the door open. Her husband. Captain Rich- 
ard Richardson, stepped inside. For a mo- 
ment the wife scarcely recognized the gaunt, 
travel-stained soldier, and her joy at his 
coming was mingled with sadness as she saw 

how he was wasted by disease. 

130 



ANOTHER OF MARION'S MEN 131 




Her husband, Captain Richardson, stepped inside. 



132 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

"What is it, Dick?" she asked anxiously. 
''What makes you look so?" in the same 
breath with "How did you get here ?" and 
"Will they follow you and capture you 
again ?" 

"Not so fast with your questions, Dorcas," 
answered the captain, as the good wife made 
him comfortable in his own favorite easy 
chair. "Yes, I've been sick. It was small- 
pox, and I scarce wonder that you didn't 
know me. It's left its ugly mark. But 
perhaps 'twas a blessing after all, since with- 
out it, I'd have been taken a dozen times 
between the coast and the Santee. But 
when British or Tory approached," he added 
with a grim chuckle, "I had only to walk 
feebly and thrust my pock-marked face for- 
ward to set them all running for fear of their 
lives." 

Dorcas was swiftly setting food before the 
hungry man, while question and answer 
flew fast between them. 

"I scarce dared approach the house for fear 



ANOTHER OF MARION'S MEN 133 

'twas in the hands of the enemy," said the 
captain. "'Twould have been hard lines 
indeed to escape from one British prison only 
to be marched off to another. Have they 
not troubled you at all .^" 

''Indeed they have done us no harm, Dick, 
but weVe seen them often enough. Yester- 
day Tarleton himself rode all about the house 
and gardens, and I expect nothing less than 
to see his troops quartered all over the planta- 
tion. If they should find you here — " 

''But they won't, Dorcas, because I don't 
intend to be here. Before daylight I must 
be on my way to the swamp." 

"The swamp.?" Oh, you mean until — " 

"Until they get tired of looking for me and 
so give me a chance to slip away to Marion." 

The night was a busy one for Dorcas. 
She gathered together blankets and other 
simple comforts, as well as food, to be carried 
to the swamp. As the first dawn showed in 
the east, she roused a faithful old slave and 
directed him to bring the captain's favorite 



\ 



134 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

riding horse from the stable and to drive out 
certain of the cows. When all was ready, 
she roused her weary husband, and the little 
procession, led by the captain and the old 
slave, set out toward the swamp, leaving 
Dorcas standing at the back of the house, 
anxiously gazing after them. 

She had little time for reflection, however, 
as, at an early hour, the sound of approach- 
ing horsemen indicated that there were sol- 
diers in the neighborhood. 

Trembling lest it should be a search party 
looking for her husband, she answered the 
resounding knock upon the great front door. 
The soldiers standing without, however, had 
nothing to say about the captain. Their 
errand was to inform her that her house and 
stables were needed as quarters for a portion 
of Tarleton's cavalry ; and before noon the 
place was swarming with redcoats. 

The days that followed were hard ones 
for the patriotic woman. She was allowed 
only one room in the house for herself and 



ANOTHER OF MARION'S MEN 135 

her children, and of all the plentiful provisions 
which were really hers only the scantiest 
were given her. Once every day or night 
the faithful slave made a secret journey to 
the swamp, carrying the food his mistress 
had saved from this scanty store. Captain 
Richardson was encamped on a small knoll 
deep in the swamp. He called it ''John's 
Island," perhaps in memory of the island of 
that name on the coast, from which he had 
recently escaped. His horse was stabled 
in a disused corncrib, and the cattle pastured 
near. Not far away another knoll rose from 
the wet swamp lands, on which were other 
patriots hiding from their enemies and watch- 
ing their chance to join Marion or Sumter. 
Captain Richardson spent much of his time 
in drilling these men, and would have been 
happy enough in his forest camp, but for the 
thought of his wife and children, deprived 
of their home comforts by the enemy. 

One day the slave was heard approaching 
for his daily visit, and the captain was some- 



136 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

what alarmed to hear him talking to some 
one as he drew near the camp. A moment 
of listening changed his fear to joy; for the 
old slave was saying, ''Be ca'ful, dar, Mistis. 
Step on dis log. Lemme help de baby." 
As the captain ran forward, he saw Dorcas 
and his little daughter coming to meet him. 

Husband and wife spent a happy hour 
together, while the little girl ran about play- 
ing among the trees. 

"The}^ have news of your escape, Dick," 
said Dorcas, sadly. "They have begun to 
question me. And they have posted notice of 
a reward for any one who will capture you." 

''Have no fear for me, Dorcas," answered 
her husband. "They'll never find me here. 
I am far more disturbed over your danger 
than mine. Will you promise that you will 
let me know if you need a defender ?" The 
wife promised, although she felt sure the 
danger would be very great which would 
cause her to summon her husband to fall 
into British hands. 



ANOTHER OF MARION'S MEN 137 

It was only a few days after this visit to 
the swamp that a British officer caught up 
the little daughter In his arms as she ran at 
play outside the house. "Tell me, little 
one," he asked, ''When did you see your 
father last?" 

''Just the other day," the child answered 
promptly, as she smoothed the scarlet cloth 
of his coat and patted the epaulets on his 
shoulders. 

"Where did you see him ?" asked the officer. 
"Was he here?" 

"No," she answered, "I saw him on John's 
Island. He hasn't any pretty coat like yours." 

The mother, who heard this questioning, 
was pale with fear as she heard the secret 
betrayed ; but the officer knew of no John's 
Island except the British prison Island from 
which Captain Richardson had escaped. So 
he set the child down, saying, "That was long 
ago, little one. I guess you have forgotten." 

Once Captain Richardson ventured from 
the swamp to the house, when the soldiers 



138 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

were all away ; but scarcely had he begun 
to enjoy his visit when a patrolling party 
of the British came galloping up, and only 
instant flight could save him. While he 
hurried out the back door, Dorcas stood in 
the doorway at the front, delaying the en- 
trance of the soldiers by her questions, asked 
so coolly as to arouse no suspicion of the 
patriot flying for his life. 

Soon after this, the captain found oppor- 
tunity to leave his hiding place with the other 
patriots who had shared his retreat. They 
were successful in reaching Marion's camp, and 
remained with Marion until the war was over. 

Twice at least after this Captain Richard- 
son found himself in danger when visiting his 
family. One night, after Tarleton's removal 
from the Richardson plantation, the captain 
rode up on the horse which had shared his 
hiding place in the swamp. 

*^Corncrib and I are glad to be at home 
again," laughed the captain as he dismounted 
at the door. 



ANOTHER OF MARION'S MEN 139 

"Corncrib?" asked his wife. "Who is 
Corncrib ?" 

"This is Corncrib," returned the captain, 
patting the faithful horse. "He has a new 
name since he lived in the old corncrib on — " 

But the sentence was not finished, nor the 
visit made, since at that very minute a group 
of Tories was seen riding up the road. There 
seemed no escape, but the captain flung him- 
self into the saddle, and as his only hope, 
dashed furiously forward, into the very midst 
of the Tories ; and took them so by surprise 
that he galloped safely through, untouched 
by ball or sword thrust. 

Stories like these, of the bravery and en- 
durance of patriot men and women, quite 
unknown to fame, may be multiplied from 
every section of the country while the war 
went on. Some of these stories have been 
long forgotten, others are treasured by the 
descendants of the heroes and will be told and 
retold as each succeeding generation comes 
to listen. 



A HERO OF THE SEA 




For weeks Commodore Paul Jones, of the 
American Continental Navy, had been cruis- 
ing about the coast of England In his ship, 
the Bonhomme Richard. He had captured 
many merchant vessels and had the whole 
coast in terror. Yet he was not satisfied ; 

140 



A HERO OF THE SEA 141 

for he had met no British man-of-war, and 
to meet one was his heart's desire. 

Especially had he hoped to come upon the 
Baltic fleet, bringing naval stores from north- 
ern Europe to England and guarded by some 
ship of war. In one more week his cruise 
must come to an end, and he must return to 
France to report to the American Commis- 
sioners there what he considered his failure. 

It was about noon of September 23, 1779. 
The Richard lay ten or twelve miles off Flam- 
boro' Head, on the east coast of England. 
Near her were the other ships of the fleet, — 
the Alliance, the Pallas, and the little Ven- 
geance. All were waiting and watching for 
the appearance of the Baltic fleet. 

Then suddenly, as they waited, the lookout 
on the Richard reported a sail appearing 
around the headland, and then another and 
another, until it was clear that the Baltic 
fleet was in sight, — forty richly laden ships, 
guarded by a frigate and a sloop of war, mak- 
ing sail for the shelter of Scarborough harbor 



142 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

and the protection of Scarborough Castle 
guns. 

Here was the chance for which Paul Jones 
had longed. He saw at once that the larger 
of the two war ships was a stronger vessel 
than the Richard^ with heavier guns. But 
when you have come to know Paul Jones 
better, you will know that the strength of his 
enemy would never keep him out of battle. 
Signalling to the Alliance and the Pallas to 
follow, he turned at once to get between the 
frigate and the shore. The Pallas, at his 
order, followed the sloop, but the Alliance 
simply ran away. 

You must remember that these war-ships 
of Revolutionary times were not the swift- 
sailing battleships and ''dreadnaughts" of 
the present day. Their hulls were of wood, 
their sailing power was the wind, and their 
movements were often slow and clumsy. 
Hours passed before the Richard drew near 
the British frigate. The Richard was an old 
ship, and a slow one — indeed she had not 



A HERO OF THE SEA 143 

been intended for a war-ship at all, but for 
the East Indian trade. She had been bought 
by the French government, repaired and 
fitted with cannon, and lent to the American 
navy. Her guns were all old, and many of 
them had been condemned by the French 
dockyard from which they came. At the 
time they were the best to be had, so Commo- 
dore Jones had taken them and set out to do 
the best he could. Some commanders might 
have feared with such a ship to attack the 
fine new frigate Serapis of the British navy. 
The only fear shown by Paul Jones was lest 
she should get away. 

Slowly the miles between the Richard and 
the Serapis grew less. Through the long 
afternoon preparations for battle were made, 
and the decks were "cleared for action." 
As the sun went down the crews had their 
supper, and then on either ship came the grim 
roll of the drums, ''beating to quarters." 
The long twilight had begun. The moon, 
at its full that night, shed a golden radiance 



144 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

over the gently swelling sea. The wind was 
light, and the ships seemed scarcely more 
than to drift toward each other. 

The Serapis lay with broadside toward the 
Richard, great guns thrust forward from the 
port-holes, and every opening in her white 
hull gleaming with light. On board, captain 
and crew were watching the oncoming ship, 
high of stern, black, and unfamiliar enough 
to set all guessing at her nationality and pur- 
pose. Captain Pearson, of the Serapis, stood, 
night-glass in hand, watching every move- 
ment of the stranger. Once he said, "It is 
probably Paul Jones. If so, there is work 
ahead." 

The ships drew nearer. The magazines 
were opened ; the gunners ready to hand out 
powder charges to the boys who carried them 
to the guns. The gun crews were in their 
places, with shot ready and slow matches 
lighted. Cutlasses and pistols were given 
out. Pumps were made ready, and hose laid 
out in case of fire. Carpenters stood with 



A HERO OF THE SEA 



I4S 



shot plugs ready to stop up holes. Great 
hooks were swung from chains, in readiness 




The Bonhomme Richard and the Serapis. 

for lashing the ships together if they should 
touch. Away from the guns, on quarter deck 



146 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

and forecastle, were placed ranks of marines, 
with muskets ready, while the rigging was 
filled with others, similarly armed, and with 
buckets of hand-grenades within reach. 

Below the main deck, in the gun room, 
were more guns with their crews, and below 
again, was the ^'cockpit," where the surgeons 
laid out the rude instruments and appliances 
with which to do their saving work. On 
either ship were about three hundred men, 
quietly waiting, each in his appointed place, 
to begin the awful work of destruction and 
death. 

On the Richard, Paul Jones stood, silent, 
on the deck, watching the closing in of the 
ships. He had been from station to station, 
seeing that all was in order, with a word of 
encouragement here and there, and a giving 
of his own calm courage to the men. Now, 
again, he stood alone, and silent. What his 
thoughts were we cannot guess. Perhaps 
he thought tenderly of his old mother in 
Scotland or fiercely of the cowardly captain 



A HERO OF THE SEA 147 

of the Alliance, who had sailed away. What- 
ever his thoughts, he stood, small in stature 
but commanding in presence, with his fine 
eyes confident and serene. Some one has 
said of Paul Jones, "He was born a captain." 

The ships drew nearer yet, with now no 
sound on either but the soft lapping of the 
water against the sides, the creak of a rope, 
or the gentle sigh of the wind in the swelling 
sails. 

Then, suddenly, a man leaped upon the 
rail of the Serapis, and from his hollowed 
hands came the echoing call, "What ship is 
that.?" 

There was no answer. The Richard was 
swinging about now, with her broadside to- 
ward the foe. Again the same words rang 
over the moonlit water. "What ship is 
that.?" Then sharp and clear, "Answer at 
once, or I fire." 

Then there was answer, — the thunder of 
the cannon, fired from the blazing portholes 
of the black stranger's side. 



148 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

The last entry In the log of the Serapis 
reads: ^'Sea smooth, moon full, sky clear, 
time 7: 15 P.M. We hail second time, enemy 
answers with broadside." 

In an instant the Serapis made reply with 
the roar of her great guns, and the still beauty 
of the night was at an end. The battle was 
on ! 

For nearly an hour the two ships furiously 
poured broadsides into each other as they 
sailed slowly along side by side. In this sort 
of fight the Serapis could easily do the greater 
damage, as her guns were heavier and in 
better condition. Indeed, at almost the first 
fire two of the Richard^s heavy guns had 
exploded, killing men in the gun crews and 
finally causing the abandonment of all the 
guns on that deck. One by one the RicharcTs 
guns were silenced by the firing from the 
Serapis, and, more than that, the heavy 
cannon-balls were tearing great holes in the 
RicharcTs side. Water began to enter the 
holes, and fire blazed in many places where 



A HERO OF THE SEA 149 

burning splinters had struck. Dead and 
dying men were everywhere. 

The ships were drawing nearer as they 
sailed along, and the Commodore watched 
intently for a chance to grapple with the 
enemy at close quarters. At last they 
touched, and, in an instant, the grappling 
hooks of the Richard were thrown into the 
rigging of the Serapis. But the strain upon 
the ropes was too great, and as they broke, 
the two ships dropped apart again. 

It seemed as though the end of the battle 
was at hand. Yet no man on the Richard 
thought of giving up. ''He is hammering 
us all to pieces," said the Commodore to 
his first officer. ''We must close with him; 
we must get hold of him." Indeed, this was 
the only hope. Steadily the commander 
worked the ship to reach this position. By 
this time only three of the cannon on the 
Richard could be used, and the broadsides of 
the Serapis continued as furiously as ever. 
The whole side of the Richard below the deck 



I50 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

was broken in, and fires raged in a dozen 
directions. 

Just then the Alliance appeared. For a 
moment Jones thought her captain had re- 
turned to his duty. To the utter amaze- 
ment of the whole crew, however, the broad- 
sides of the Alliance were aimed full at the 
Richard; here was a new enemy, it s-eemed. 
But after a few shots, the Alliance sailed off 
again and left the Commodore to give un- 
divided attention to the work in hand. A 
change of wind was helping a little now, 
and slowly the Richard came close and swung 
around the bow of the Serapis. 

Now, if ever, the chance would come. 
The Richard grazed along the side of the white 
ship, only a few hours since so spotless, now 
smoke-stained, splintered, and bloody. An an- 
chor on the Serapis caught in the rigging of 
the Richard. Men dashed forward, and it 
is said that the Commodore himself threw 
a rope around the anchor and lashed it 
fast. 



A HERO OF THE SEA 151 

Now the whole character of the battle 
changed. The great guns of the Serapis 
could do little but shoot straight through the 
gun deck of the Richard, already abandoned. 
It was now a hand-to-hand fight, in which 
cannon had but little part. 

A gunner on the Richard came rushing to 
the deck from below, shouting that the ship 
was sinking, and calling, "Quarter! Quar- 
ter!" Although Jones quickly silenced him, 
the cry had been heard on the English ship. 
From the smoke clouds surrounding the two 
vessels came the voice of the English captain, 
"Have you struck your colors, Sir ?" 

"No!" came the response in the mag- 
nificent voice of Paul Jones. "Sir, I have 
not yet begun to fight." 

It was true. On a sinking ship, with 
cannon broken and useless, Paul Jones was 
going to fight, — and fight until the waves 
swallowed the ship on which he stood ; he 
could not be conquered, alive. 

The confusion on the Richard grew with 



152 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

each moment. The muskets of the marines 
on the upper decks now began their deadly 
work, sweeping the exposed places on the 
Serapis, Eleven men were shot, one after 
another, at the wheel, and man after man who 
ran forward to cut loose the anchor which 
held the ships together. Again, it was the 
Commodore himself who commanded the 
marines and cheered them by his own magnifi- 
cent courage. 

"I could distinctly hear, amid the crashing 
of the musketry," wrote one young officer 
of the Richard in describing the battle, "the 
great voice of the Commodore, cheering the 
French marines in their own tongue, . . . ex- 
horting them to take good aim, pointing out 
objects for their fire, and frequently giving 
them direct example by taking their loaded 
muskets from their hands into his, and firing 
himself. In fact, toward the very last, he 
had about him a group of half a dozen marines 
who did nothing but load their firelocks and 
hand them to the Commodore, who fired them 



A HERO OF THE SEA 



153 



from his own shoulder, standing on the quar- 
ter deck rail. . . ." 

Meanwhile, believing the Richard to be 
sinking, an officer in charge of more than two 
hundred English prisoners in the hold had 
let them loose, and a new danger had to be met. 
It was met, at once, before more than fifty 
had reached the deck. The rest were held 
back by men with cutlasses, and the fifty 
driven to man the pumps which alone kept 
the ship afloat. 

Now, again, the Alliance appeared, with 
her murderous fire for her sister ship. A 
perfect hail of shot rained from her guns, 
as she slowly passed and sailed away again 
into the night. But the Richard fought on. 

By this time the upper decks of the Serapis 
had been cleared. No man dared show his 
head upon them. The captain stood on the 
quarter deck alone. Both ships were on fire ; 
the Richard, in many places. The great guns 
of the Serapis continued their work. Now 
a new attack was made from the Richard, 



154 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

From the yard-arm a cool young midshipman 
threw down hand-grenades upon the open 
hatch leading to the enemy's lower deck. The 
third attempt sent one down the hatchway, 
where, falling in the midst of a pile of car- 
tridges, it produced a terrific explosion, kill- 
ing and wounding many men. At last the 
English sailors faltered and, though only for 
a moment, that moment was enough. 

A boarding party leaped from the Richard 
to the deck of the Serapis, Every man of 
the party is said to have been but lately from 
an English prison, and as they went over the 
side, their leader shouted fiercely, "Remem- 
ber Portsea jail !" 

With the Americans now swarming on his 
deck, the English captain sadly seized the 
ensign halyards and struck the flag himself. 
For a moment the battle raged on. In the 
smoke and confusion the surrender was not 
seen. But word was soon passed to the 
fighters of both ships, and the fighting ceased. 

The captain and the first officer of the Sera- 



A HERO OF THE SEA 155 

pis were led on board the Richard, where they 
gave up their swords. The ropes which 
bound the ships together were cut, and the 
ships gently drifted apart. 

It was now nearly midnight. The full 
moon sailed above In a cloudless sky. The 
last echoes of the firing had died away, and 
again the still beauty of the night was un- 
broken by the horrid sounds of war. 

On the ships the awful consequences of 
war were on every hand. Dead and wounded 
lay together In horrible confusion. Fire had 
still to be fought, and the Richard was slowly 
but surely sinking. Strange indeed, to think 
that the broken, battered ship was the con- 
queror, — sinking there beside the conquered, 
which remained afloat. 

It was Paul Jones who had conquered, — 
'*the man behind the men behind the guns." 

The Pallas, too, had found victory In the 
fight, returning now with her prize, the 
Countess of Scarborough. As soon as it was 
found that the Richard could not be saved, 



156 PIONEERS AND PATRIOTS 

the sad work of moving the wounded was 
begun. These were put on board the Serapis. 
The prisoners were divided among all the 
ships. Finally, the Richard^s crew, with the 
hastily gathered ship's papers, left the sink- 
ing ship. By hard work at the pumps she 
had been kept afloat until the morning of 
the 25th. Now she was left to find her 
last resting-place where she had won her 
victory. 

Let us finish the story in Jones's own words : 
"No one was now left aboard the Richard 
but our dead. To them I gave the good old 
ship for their coffin, and in her they found a 
sublime sepulchre. She rolled heavily in the 
long swell, her gun-deck awash to the port- 
sills, settled slowly by the head, and sank 
peacefully in about forty fathoms. 

''The ensign-gaff, shot away in the action, 
had been fished and put in place soon after 
firing ceased, and our torn and tattered flag 
was left flying when we abandoned her. As 
she plunged down by the head at the last, her 



A HERO OF THE SEA 157 

taffrall momentarily rose in the air ; so the 
very last vestige mortal eyes ever saw of the 
Bonhomme Richard was the defiant waving 
of her unconquered and unstricken flag as 
she went down." 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




